


Beginning at the End: Gladio

by Ithiel_Dragon



Series: Beginning at the End [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Blood and Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Did I Mention Angst?, Drama, Emotional Constipation, Explicit Sexual Content, Feelings Realization, Fishing, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Men Crying, Porn with Feelings, Spoilers, Stoic Manpain, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-28
Updated: 2018-04-14
Packaged: 2019-04-14 03:02:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14126682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ithiel_Dragon/pseuds/Ithiel_Dragon
Summary: Noctis, having accepted the gift offered to him by Lunafreya, wakes up ten years in the past.  At first he's not sure where, or even or when, he is.  But he soon realizes he has a chance to make a choice that could drastically change his relationship with his Shield, for better or for worse.





	1. Chapter 1

Noctis woke to the twittering sounds of birds outside of the tent.  He blinked his eyes open slowly. The pale light filtering in through the front flap of the tent made him wince slightly and squish his face into his pillow to block it out.  Prompto was a line of warmth along his right side and back. His friend had the tendency to sprawl everywhere while he slept with no concept of personal space. Noctis had long grown used to the feeling of his friend’s lean muscled arm thrown over him during the night, and the feeling of warm breath puffing through his hair while Prompto snored in his ear.  At this point, it was actually almost comforting rather than annoying.

If he concentrated he could almost hear Ignis’ soft breathing from the other side of the tent.  Ignis never snored at all. He didn’t impersonate an octopus like Prompto did either, always keeping to his side of the sleeping area.  The man was unfailingly polite, even while he slept, it seemed. He’d probably be getting up soon to start making breakfast for them all.  Noctis’ stomach rumbled slightly in anticipation just at the thought.

Gladio, unsurprisingly, was already absent from the tent.  His shield was usually up at the ass crack of dawn to train, no matter how late they’d gone to bed the night before.  Even if it was raining. Ugh. Sometimes the man tried to rope Noctis into his early morning routine, but usually he knew it was a lost cause.  Everyone was not so secretly grateful for Gladio’s strict early morning regiment. The man could snore like a behemoth sometimes, and they were all grateful for the few hours of respite they were guaranteed in the early morning.  It was really a wonder anyone got any sleep at all.

Noctis sighed and curled up tighter in his nest of blankets, prepared to enjoy those few blissful hours, already feeling himself beginning to doze off in the comfortable familiarity of it all. It was nice to know that some things would never change.  It took far longer than it should have for him to realize there was actually something _wrong_ with the situation. Wrong, because everything was _too_ familiar.  Too… _normal_. Peaceful even. When it shouldn’t be.

Abruptly Noctis’ eyes snapped open and he sat up in a rush.  Prompto grumbled at the abrupt jostling, rolled over, and went back to sleep immediately.  Ignis didn’t stir at all. But Noctis only vaguely realized these things because his eyes were focused on the small sliver of light seeping in past the thick flaps blocking the tent’s entrance. 

Light.  Sunlight. 

There hadn’t been sunlight on Eos for ten years.  Ten… years…

His memories came rushing back so fast it left him feeling dizzy.  Ardyn tricking him into being absorbed by the crystal. A decade of isolation while his ancestors and the Astrals _prepared_ him for what needed to be done.  Finally returning to a cold bleak world he could barely recognize, filled with demons and despair, where the very light had abandoned them. 

But as he reached out hesitant towards that small sliver of light, felt it warm his cold fingers, he began to wonder if all of that had been nothing more than a horrible nightmare.  It would be easy to believe so. Even as he recounted the events in his head, they seemed almost too impossible to be real. Too horrible.

But… no…

He could feel it.  Deep down. Even if he wanted to deny his own memories, he could not deny the changes he could feel in himself.  He was not the same man he had been before he had gone into the crystal. His connection to it was more powerful than it had ever been, even now that he was back in his younger body…

That thought made him pause and raise his shaking fingers to his own face.  The tips of his fingers met smooth skin rather than the almost scraggly beard he had still been getting used to in the present.  During his ten years of imprisonment, the crystal had kept his body in surprisingly good condition, considering he hadn’t actually _eaten_ anything during that entire time.  Still, his older features had a definite sharpness to them that his younger self lacked.  He wished he had a mirror so he could actually _see_ these changes in himself and know for sure what he looked like now.

But really, all the proof he needed that he was indeed back in the past was given to him when he glanced to his side and froze upon seeing Ignis’ sleeping face.  The man’s glasses were neatly folded above his head, out of the way but in easy reach should he need them, leaving his face completely open to Noctis’ scrutiny.  Noctis’ breath caught in his throat and he felt tears burning in his eyes as he took in his friend’s unmarred features. It was all he could do not to reach over and touch the smooth unscarred skin.  To gently coax the older man awake just so he could see if his eyes were that beautiful pale green he remembered and not clouded over with unseeing white.

Thankfully a sound from outside the tent distracted Noctis from doing something he would probably regret.  There would be no way for him to explain such strange behavior. He certainly did not want to try. He was a horrible liar at the best of times and if he told his friends the truth they’d probably think he was mad. 

Instead he reached over to pull aside one of the tent’s flaps to look outside.  The early morning sunlight made him wince slightly, his eyes unused to it after so long, and he had to blink several times to clear the spots from his vision.  When he could finally see again, his breath caught in his throat as he focused on the final member of their party.

As he’d suspected, Gladio was in the middle of his early morning workout routine.  Probably near the end of it, if the light sheen of sweat covering most of the man’s face and torso was any indication.  Gladio usually liked to start off with a run around the perimeter of the haven, that sometimes Prompto joined him in. Then finish off with a series of intense exercises, that usually exhausted Noctis just by watching. Right now the older man was on the ground near the remains of their long extinguished fire, doing several quick pushups.  The tight black tank top he was wearing clung to Gladio's sweat slicked skin in enticing ways, and left very little to the imagination.  A pair of gray sweat pants rode very low on the man’s hips, giving Noctis an enticing view of Gladio’s lower back and the swell of his ass where his shirt rode up.

It wasn’t as though Noctis had never seen Gladio unclothed before.  Four men camping out in the wilderness together more days than not, privacy was the first thing sacrificed. Never mind Gladio had developed an apparent aversion to wearing shirts in general a few years prior. So Noctis had been getting an eyeful of his very attractive shield for quite some time now.  Yet somehow these small glimpses of flesh seemed even more tantalizing than when Gladio was strutting around in nothing but his underwear. Maybe it was because at times like these, Gladio wasn’t _trying_ to show off.  Which, really, only made him look even more attractive, if that was even possible.

Gods help him, just watching the way the thick corded muscles of Gladio’s arms and back flexed underneath the tanned tattooed skin with every movement made Noctis’ mouth go dry.  The dawn light rising over the edge of the treeline painted the man in pink and gold highlights, and Noctis wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anything so perfect in his entire life.

Or maybe he was just getting sentimental in his ‘old age’.  It had been such a long time…

His thoughts were cut short when Gladio suddenly looked up in the middle of his exercise, his eyes widened a little in surprise upon seeing him awake, then he grinned.  Noctis felt his heart actually stutter in his chest.

“Hey, you’re up.  I was just going to wake you,” Gladio’s voice was pitched low in deference to their still slumbering companions as the man easily rolled back onto his haunches and stood.  It was easy to forget that for such a big guy Gladio could move pretty gracefully when he wanted to, “Just let me get changed and we can go.”

Noctis blinked stupidly at his shield.

“Go?”

Gladio frowned slightly, “Down to the lake? Catch the uncatchable fish?  You remember don’t you?”

It was only then that Noctis realized exactly where, and when, he was.  They were camped at a haven near the Vesperpool. He remembered it as though it were yesterday… because technically, it _was_ .  When they’d stopped to camp Gladio had surprised him by asking him to go fishing in the morning.  It had surprised him because usually he had to drag his friends along, practically kicking and screaming to enjoy his favorite hobby.  Not that he really blamed them. He supposed just sitting around and watching someone else fish for hours wouldn’t be all that fun for him either and he actually _liked_ fishing.  Though Gladio usually complained the least cause it gave him plenty of time to catch up on his reading. 

But they weren’t just going after any normal fish.  They were going after the so called _Liege of the Lake_.  A veritable legend in the area.  A monster sized Noble Arapaima that no one had ever caught, as far as they knew.  Noctis had been immediately intrigued and excited at the prospect of the challenge despite the necessary early morning wake up call.  Noctis had even managed to hook the magnificent fish, but during the long fight the line had snapped and it had gotten away.  Of course he’d been disappointed, but it had still… been a good day.

Was this why he’d come back?  Was this one of his greatest regrets?  That he hadn’t managed to catch the trophy fish of his dreams?  Even for him that seemed a little… shallow. But… no… it was more than that. Because after they had left the lake, Gladio had thrown his arm around Noctis’ shoulders goodnaturedly, and smiled stunningly at him. Playfully encouraging that they’d get him next time and… with Gladio so warm beside him, so close he could see the golden flecks in his eyes, Noctis had wanted to kiss him. 

It wasn’t the first time Noctis had such thoughts.  It definitely hadn’t been the last. But right then and there… it had been the hardest to resist. Because for a moment, something in the older man’s eyes… it almost made him believe Gladio wanted it too.  But he had managed to resist. Playfully shoving at Gladio with a laugh he hoped didn’t sound as shaky as he felt. Gladio had laughed in return, mussed his hair… and then the moment passed.

Even ten years later, Noctis still regretted not taking that chance… only it wasn’t ten years later.  It was now. That very day… and the moment hadn’t happened yet. Oh gods… he had wished for this chance so many times, but now that he finally had it, he wasn’t sure if he could do this.

“Noct?  You okay?  You look a little pale…” Gladio’s concerned voice pulled him out of the downward spiral of his thoughts.  The older man had moved without Noctis even realizing it, and was now crouching down in front of him. His brows furrowed with concern as he brushed his palm over Noctis’ forehead, as though checking for a fever or something. 

Noctis managed a smile and soft laugh, though it sounded strained even to his own ears.  The look on his shield’s face told him he wasn’t fooled at all.

“Yeah, I’m fine.  Still waking up, is all,” Noctis tried for a light tone.  Gladio looked at him doubtfully for a moment more, but thankfully seemed to take that explanation at face value. 

“All right.  Well, hurry up and get dressed.  I’ll make you some coffee. We don’t want to keep his majesty waiting, now do we?”

Noctis managed a chuckle that was a little more genuine.

“Course not, that would just be rude.”

Gladio grinned again, patted him on his shoulder, then got up.  It was only then that Noctis realized that those amazingly horrible sweat pants Gladio was wearing had somehow slipped even _lower_ , showing off the older man’s hip bones and even a hint of dark hair disappearing under… before Gladio turned away and casually hiked them back up to where they belonged.  Gods help him… Noctis reminded himself to breathe… he could do this.

* * *

Noctis dressed quickly in the loosest fitting jeans he currently owned, because he had a feeling he was going to need the extra… room… before this was all over.  By the time he was finished, Gladio had changed too, or at least changed his pants for his preferred leather trousers, though he still sported the practically sinful clinging black tank top.  He also had the promised coffee ready and Noctis tried not to burn his tongue too much as he gulped it down quickly. Though he was already pretty wired by that point and probably didn’t need the extra caffeine, he hoped it would somehow help settle his nerves. 

Once they made it down to the lakeside it was a little easier, if only because Gladio picked a spot to sit on the pier out of his direct line of sight while Noctis fished.  Though still close enough that all the prince really had to do was turn his head slightly to get a glimpse of the terribly attractive man out of the corner of his eye.

But Noctis soon lost himself in the familiar relaxing motions of baiting and casting his line into the water.  He hadn’t done this in so long… he honestly never thought he’d have the chance to do this again. It was a good spot.  He’d already managed to catch a few good sized fish that Ignis could cook up for lunch. Even if he didn’t manage to hook the Liege this time, Noctis wouldn’t be disappointed.  Already it was more than worth it… if Gladio only knew just how much this meant to him…

Then suddenly there was a sharp yank on the line that almost ripped the rod right out from his hands.  He cursed sharply and braced himself, knowing immediately that he had hooked the Noble Arapaima from memory alone. 

“Noct?  Is that it?  Shit! Look at the size of it!” Gladio said excitedly, having abandoned his book by this point to stand nearly directly behind Noctis to watch.  Despite not having fished in over ten years, Noctis was still a more experienced fisherman now than he’d been the first time, and didn’t let himself get distracted.  He kept his attention keenly focused on the motions of the fish and the tension of the line. He took his time. Only reeling when the line grew slack. Still, the force with which the giant fish pulled on the line nearly had him toppling head first off the pier a couple of times despite how he tried to brace himself. The damned thing probably weighed twice as much as he did!

The second time he nearly lost his balance, he felt Gladio’s strong hands grip his waist from behind, offering him extra support.  Noctis was grateful for it, even though the heat that had shot through him at the unexpected touch made him nearly lose his grip on his rod for a second time. 

“Yeah!  You’ve almost got it!  Hang in there!” Gladio’s encouragement in his ear made Noctis flush a little, but he didn’t let it distract him.  Gladio seemed to want this just as much as Noctis did, and he didn’t want to disappoint the older man a second time… even if Gladio didn’t know it. 

It seemed to take forever.  The line wasn’t going to be able to take much more punishment despite how careful Noctis was being.  Damn it… so close… he almost didn’t realize it when the fish’s struggles began to lessen.  Then he realized it was close enough to the dock to land…

“Gladio help me…”

“Leave it to me,” the older man said quickly, and Noctis immediately missed the warmth of the older man’s hands on his waist.  But then Gladio surprised Noctis by actually jumping _off_ the end of the pier into the water.  Noctis laughed as he watched his shield hoist the giant fish onto his back and drag it the rest of the way to the pier.  Damn, the thing was nearly longer than Gladio was tall! It took both of them to finally haul it up onto the dock.

“Yeah!  We did it!” Gladio yelled, startling a few birds nearby as he clapped Noctis hard on the back.  Noctis grinned from ear to ear, but as he watched the magnificent fish gasping weakly on the wooden planks he quickly came to a decision.

“Gladio, hold it down while I cut the hook free,” he ordered while he dug in his tackle box for his wire cutters.

“What?  You serious?” Gladio asked in obvious surprise, after all, this was the catch of a _lifetime_ , and they both knew it.

“Hurry!” Noctis insisted, and Gladio didn’t question him a second time.  He held the struggling fish as firmly as he dared without hurting it so Noctis could cut the hook free relatively cleanly.  Then they both pushed the fish off of the pier back into the water. For a moment Noctis feared it was too late, but then with a strong slap of its tail that splashed muddy water directly into the prince’s face, the Liege of the Lake disappeared back into the water’s depths.  Gladio nearly bust a gut laughing at his sputtering.

“He’ll be alright.  He’s a fighter,” Gladio said after he finally regained his composure, giving Noctis an odd look while he watched the prince put away his supplies in the tackle box, “You’ve never really been the catch and release type.”

Noctis shrugged slightly.

“It just… seemed a shame. He’s survived this long.  Maybe I’m feeling sentimental,” Noctis replied, causing Gladio to raise an eyebrow at him, “I just wanted to know I could catch him.”

Gladio hummed thoughtfully.

“Too bad Prompto wasn’t here.  Could have at least gotten a picture,” Gladio said and Noctis shrugged again. 

“I’m glad it was just us,” he said softly.  Not that he didn’t love all of his friends, and enjoyed any time they spent together, but this… this moment was just for him and Gladio, “Thanks, Gladio.  For… everything.”

Gladio looked at him for a long moment, then smiled, and reached over to brush Noctis’ soaked bangs out of his face, “Anytime, Princess.”

Noctis’ heart fluttered a little at the old, once annoying, nickname.  He shoved at Gladio playfully.

“Musclehead.”

Gladio chuckled and grabbed the bucket of fish that Noctis _had_ decided to keep. 

“Come on, let’s get these back to Iggy. I’m starving,” Gladio said and threw his arm over Noctis’ shoulders, leading him away from the pier.  Noctis’ heart began to hammer in his chest as he realized this was it. This was the moment he could choose to change or not. He could playfully shrug off Gladio’s arm as he normally would, letting them keep the tenuous grip on the status quo they’d been holding onto for years. Or…

Gladio looked down at him, so close his eyes seemed to glitter with flecks of gold in the sunlight… Noctis’ heart tumbled in his chest, and he stopped walking.

“Gladio, wait…” Noctis barely whispered, his voice catching a little in his throat.  His hand came to rest lightly on the front of the older man’s shirt to halt his progress.  Gladio’s expression reflected confusion but also surprising patience as Noctis plucked lightly at the damp material.  Somehow it was easier to focus on the way the wet fabric clung to Gladio’s skin, showing off the sculpted muscles hidden underneath, than to look him in the eye.  Even though the realization he was blatantly ogling his friend made color rush to his cheeks.

“What is it?” Gladio finally prompted when he realized Noctis wasn’t going to speak. 

“I…” he forced himself to look up into Gladio’s eyes.  The warmth in those amber depths lit a spark inside his heart, and Noctis ran up the white flag.  His hand slid up, over Gladio’s chest, and around the back of the older man’s neck. Gladio’s eyes widened a little in surprise at the bold touch, but he didn’t pull away.  That alone gave Noctis the extra confidence to pull the Gladio down.  At the same time Noctis rose up on his toes, and pressed his lips to the man he loved.

He heard and felt Gladio gasp against his mouth.  He distantly registered the sound of the bucket hitting the ground, probably spilling its contents, but at the moment Noctis didn’t really care.  He felt Gladio’s hands grip his waist for the second time today, tighter than before, and probably leaving faint finger shaped bruises where his fingers dug into his skin.  Gladio tensed, and Noctis’ heart began to plummet as he realized he was probably about to be pushed away…

But then Gladio was gripping him even harder, and Noctis’ breath rushed out of him when he felt his back hit an outcropping of rocks that the older man had suddenly shoved him against with no small amount of force.  Yet he didn’t care about the unexpected roughness or the bruises he was probably going to have, because suddenly Gladio’s lips were practically _devouring_ him. 

Gladio kissed him desperately, like a drowning man gasping for his last breaths of air.  Noctis’ head began to spin dizzily from the sensation of hard lips, then teeth, nipping at his swollen lips.  When he felt the insistent probing of Gladio’s tongue, Noctis parted his lips with an eager moan. His hand gripped the back of Gladio’s neck tighter, his other arm looping around the taller man’s shoulders for support, and his fingers dug into his muscled back. 

The rumbling purr that echoed from Gladio’s throat had Noctis’s knees nearly giving out, not that it really mattered trapped between the rock hard wall behind him and Gladio’s rock hard muscles in front.  Noctis shifted his stance, and parted his legs so that the older man could fit between them. Moving almost in sync, Gladio’s hold shifted on him and then the older man was lifting him up by his hips. Noctis’s legs wrapped instinctively around the older man’s waist, and the extra height definitely made kissing Gladio a lot easier. 

His fingers tangled in Gladio’s dark brown hair, tugging slightly to tilt his head exactly the way he wanted, as he sucked on the older man’s tongue.  Gladio let out another low rumbling moan that went straight to Noctis’ dick, and their new position definitely couldn’t hide just how affected they both were by everything that was happening.  Noctis shifted his hips, rubbing his growing erection against the older man’s answering hardness. Gladio’s breath hitched, almost like he was in pain, then suddenly he was pulling away. 

Noctis practically whimpered with the loss of Gladio’s lips.  Too dazed for a moment to realize what was happening. When Gladio suddenly released him, Noctis’ legs nearly gave out beneath him completely, and would have left him in a sprawled mess on the ground if he wasn’t still clinging tightly to his shield.  Noctis tugged on the front of Gladio’s shirt, trying to draw him back in, and was surprised when the elder man resisted. It was then that Noctis forced himself to focus on more than just his own arousal. He looked up into Gladio’s eyes, and noted the near… panic filling them.

“Noct… what the hell are we doing?” Gladio whispered, his voice shaking either with confusion or arousal, or both, Noctis wasn’t sure.  Noctis could only blink up at him, not sure even how to begin answering that question. Gladio shook his head as though trying to clear it, “We… we can’t… fuck, Noct!  You’re getting _married_ any day now!”

Noctis’ brain was failing him, confusion and arousal making him tongue tied.  Which meant he ended up saying the first thing that finally came to mind.

“I’m not married yet,” which of course, proved to be exactly the wrong thing to say, as usual. 

Gladio’s eyes narrowed in anger.

“So what is _this_ then?! You sowing your royal oats, getting your rocks off, and another notch on your belt before you tie the fucking knot!” Gladio practically growled, shoving Noctis up against the rock a second time, leaving him breathless again for an entirely different reason.  Noctis could only stare up into the older man’s angry face with wide eyed shock.

He shouldn’t really be surprised.  Whenever Gladio was confused or… hurt… his defensive measure was usually to lash out either physically or verbally.  Noctis knew that first hand all too well. Really, it was a weakness they both shared. They both absolutely _hated_ the idea of appearing vulnerable in front of anyone, even each other, and their severe emotional constipation usually led… to very bad outcomes. Especially if Prompto and Ignis weren’t around to knock some sense into their thick skulls.

Thankfully Noctis had matured… slightly… and understood exactly what Gladio was doing.  Plus, there wasn’t much worse things Gladio could say to him than what he had on that train ride away from Altissia.  So Noctis swallowed down his pride, and resisted the urge to lash out in return, as his younger self probably would have.  Instead he looked up into Gladio’s angry expression, for once, allowing the older man to see just how hurt he was by that accusation.

“Of course not,” Noctis said calmly, almost too softly to hear, “You know me better than that… or at least… you should.”

Gladio looked at him as though Noctis had knocked the air out of him with those words.  His expression shifted from angry, to confused, as though he couldn’t fully comprehend that Noctis wasn’t lashing back at him in defense, and then… his expression crumbled into a mixture of guilt and sorrow.  Suddenly Gladio looked like he was on the verge of tears and… this wasn’t the way Noctis had wanted this to go.

“Gladio…” Noctis reached up to touch the older man’s cheek, only for Gladio to flinch as though burned.  But at least he didn’t pull away when Noctis wrapped his arms around his shield’s wide shoulders and buried his face in his neck.  Almost hesitantly Gladio’s arms wrapped around him in return, then after a few moments, the bigger man was practically crushing Noctis against his chest.  Noctis wasn’t about to complain even for an instant.

“Why?” Gladio finally whispered, his voice shaking.  If he wasn’t crying now, Noctis would be very surprised, “Why now? After… everything… why?”

Noctis really wasn’t sure what to tell him.  He couldn’t tell Gladio the truth. Gladio would think he was crazy.  He couldn’t lie to him either. He finally decided he could tell him a version of the truth.  What really mattered, at any rate.

“Because… we don't know what is going to happen,” Noctis said softly, even though that wasn't exactly true. 

It was only Gladio who didn’t know that in a few short weeks, Luna was going to die, and that Noctis was never going to be married.  He didn’t know how much anger and resentment and pain they were going to cause each other, barely making amends before they faced Ardyn, and the crystal, and ten long years apart.  Gladio didn’t know about the endless night, the daemons, and that when Noctis finally returned to end it all, there would be no time left. No time before the end. No time before Noctis would be forced to sacrifice his own life to bring light back into the world.  Only Noctis knew that this… was the only time they could ever have… and he'd be damned if he’d let it slip by again.

Noctis’ fingers lightly traced along the thick scar that sliced diagonally across Gladio’s chest from his shoulder to his hip.  He saw the older man wince slightly at the touch, the wound still tender and not fully healed. It was a harsh reminder to them both of just how close he’d come to losing Gladio that day.  If Gladio _had_ died… would Noctis have ever known? Or would he have thought that Gladio had simply… abandoned him?

He looked up at the man he loved, with tears filling his eyes.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen,” Noctis repeated, “I don’t… want to regret not taking a chance… with this… us… and never knowing what it could have been…”

Noctis felt Gladio’s calloused fingers brush along his cheek, and only realized he was actually crying when he felt the older man wipe away the wetness there. 

“I don’t want to die without knowing what it’s like to love you,” Noctis whispered, pouring all the honesty and feeling he could into those words.  He felt Gladio’s hand on his back grip him to a near painful degree.

“You’re _not_ going to die,” Gladio whispered vehemently, as though he could make it true with just the force of his conviction.  Fuck, if anyone could, it was probably Gladio. Then the older man was kissing him again.


	2. Chapter 2

It would probably come as a surprise to many, but the Crown Prince of Lucis didn’t have much in the way of sexual experience.  Probably because despite his celebrity status, many were too intimidated by his position to even speak to him, much less proposition him. 

There had been a pretty, but shy, girl he’d been partnered with for a school project his freshman year who’d been his first kiss.  It had happened in the library where they’d been researching, and she had initiated it. Though it hadn’t amounted to much more than a quick peck of lips before they’d parted ways in embarrassment, and they’d barely managed to deliver their presentation in front of their class the next day without blushing uncontrollably.

The second time was at a party Prompto had somehow gotten invited to and had dragged Noctis along despite his better judgement.  Being a dumb sixteen year old, Noctis had drank way too much and eventually ended up in a room alone with a girl who was a few years older than him.  Before he knew it, his pants were around his ankles and her mouth was around his cock. Given his experience, or lack there of, it was probably the quickest blowjob in the history of blowjobs.  She’d probably been disappointed, but had the good grace not to express it. Before Noctis could reciprocate in any meaningful way, Ignis had shown up at the party and dragged him and Prompto back to the citadel practically by the scruff of their necks where they’d received quite the scolding from his father.  Prompto had looked like he might actually pass out where he stood receiving the ‘disappointed parent’ lecture from the _King_ himself.  

The third time had also involved Prompto… and liquor… but thankfully at least it was in the privacy of Noctis’ own apartment.  It was a few days before Prompto’s eighteenth birthday and the younger teen had been bemoaning his lack of experience making out with anyone.  Trying to make his friend feel better, Noctis had expressed his own lack of experience, and somehow they had decided it was a good idea to practice with each other, so they wouldn’t make complete idiots of themselves when the time came. 

It… had actually been rather nice.  Awkward at first, definitely. Neither of them really knew what to do with their lips, or hands, and the liquor certainly didn’t help their coordination.  But eventually they managed to work it out and it was… nice. Though it didn’t get any farther than kissing and some heavy petting.

Noctis had expected it to be different when they woke up together in his bed the next day, but surprisingly it wasn’t.  Prompto showered and changed, and Noctis showed him to the door before Ignis was scheduled to arrive to make him breakfast.  Somehow it wasn’t awkward even when Noctis received a quick kiss on the cheek from the blushing teen before Prompto left.

They'd fooled around couple more times, though again, it never got much further than some heavy make out sessions.  Prompto had surprised him by putting his hand down Noctis’ pants once, and he’d been happy to return the favor. But then they just kind of… stopped.  They were still best friends. They still hung out together practically all the time. But by some mutual unspoken agreement, they just didn’t kiss anymore.  Didn’t even really acknowledge that it had happened. Noctis figured it must have just been a phase and it had passed. There was no hard feelings about it on either side.  It had only ever been born from curiosity and mutual trust.

Still, despite his relative lack of experience, Noctis would swear to the Astrals that Gladio was the best kisser on the entire continent.  Maybe even the entire planet. Gladio kissed him like it was his mission in life to pull the most embarrassingly needy sounds from Noctis’ throat as possible.  His lips were firm, unrelenting, and tender all at the same time. His tongue explored nearly every inch of Noctis’ mouth. Tracing his teeth, stroking along his palate, dueling with his own tongue, and Noctis was all too happy to submit to the thorough exploration with eager whimpering moans. 

Gladio’s hands were far from idle either.  They stroked along his sides and up his back.  First exploring over damp clothing and then slipping underneath to stroke along his skin, making Noctis shiver in delight.  When the big hands slid down to grasp his ass and squeeze his cheeks firmly, Noctis let out an embarrassing squeak followed by a low moan.  The older man chuckled warmly, the sound making Noctis’ blood feel hot in his veins.

“Noct…” the sound of his name whispered with such longing against his lips when Gladio finally released him for a much needed breath made Noctis feel weak in the knees again and he hooked his fingers in the waistband of Gladio’s pants for support.  The older man groaned and began mouthing along the line of Noctis’ jaw, working his way down to his neck, and Noctis tilted his head to the side to give the other man’s lips better access.

Noctis closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of musk and sweat and...  He couldn’t help it, despite the very pleasant feeling of Gladio’s lips sucking at the side of his neck, Noctis started to giggle uncontrollably.  This of course, much to his disappointment, made Gladio stop what he was doing and lift his head, giving Noctis a confused look.

“Not really the reaction I was expecting,” Gladio commented, clearly amused.  Noctis only giggled harder.

“You smell like fish,” the prince finally managed between his giggles. 

Gladio snorted, then responded by pushing his hands beneath the back of Noctis’ jeans and squeezing Noctis’ ass firmly.  Noctis whimpered and tried not to swoon.

“You complaining?” Gladio asked playfully, and Noctis quickly shook his head.  The older man smirked, clearly pleased with himself, and went back to exploring the sensitive skin of Noctis’ neck with his lips and tongue.  It was at that point Noctis decided Gladio deserved a little payback.

Noctis’ hands wandered up underneath the clinging material of Gladio’s shirt to trace along the firm muscles of his abdomen. He felt those muscles flutter and tighten enticingly as he traced along Gladio’s sides and then slid upward.  A rumbling moan was purred into his ear as his fingers found and began to play with the elder man’s nipples, rubbing, pinching, and lightly tugging on the sensitive flesh.

Gladio pushed his erection into Noctis’ stomach with an almost desperate sound, then pulled away just as suddenly.  But to Noctis’ relief, it was only so the man could strip off his wet tank top entirely, before Gladio pressed himself more firmly against Noctis’ body. Noctis let his hands roam freely over Gladio’s well sculpted chest.  Something he’d wanted to do for so damned long. Honestly, the older man was a walking wet dream. Strutting around in those damned skin tight leather pants, open leather jacket, no shirt, showing off his perfectly muscled chest and abs for everyone and everything and pretending he didn’t notice half of Eos drooling after him. 

He scraped his nails down Gladio’s stomach to his waistband, just to feel those muscles tremble beneath his fingertips.  Gladio gazed down at him, his pupils blown so wide with arousal barely a sliver of warm color remained in his eyes. It emboldened Noctis to unbutton and unzip the tight leather.

“You should know,” Noctis breathed, dropping down to his knees in front of Gladio, “You’re the only ‘notch’ on my belt.”

With that he tugged down Gladio’s trousers and underwear enough to allow the elder man’s massive erection to spring free.  Noctis only allowed himself a moment to feel both awed and intimidated by its size, before he wrapped a steadying hand around the base and took the thick head into his mouth.  Gladio hissed, his hips jerking slightly, and Noctis rested a steadying hand on the other man’s hip as he swirled his tongue around the crown and sucked on the tip.

He had no real idea what he was doing, the only blowjob he’d ever received had in no way prepared him for this.  But he’d seen enough porn, and had enough common sense, to know to avoid using his teeth. He knew he couldn’t take Gladio very far into his mouth, given its size and his lack of experience, so he didn’t even try.  But he did his best to make up for it by using his hand to stroke up and down the shaft he couldn’t fit. His saliva dripped down his chin and the length of Gladio’s cock providing more than enough lubrication for the task. 

Gladio definitely didn’t seem to mind his lack of experience, and Noctis liked to think his enthusiasm made up for it.  His hands were braced on the rock formation Noctis had been previously pinned against, his knuckles white he was gripping the rough stone so tightly.  His muscles were tense and trembling, probably resisting the urge to buck his hips and thrust down Noctis’ unprepared throat. Noctis appreciated the gesture, even though the idea of Gladio letting loose and fucking his throat raw nearly had the prince swooning. 

The older man’s eyes were so dark they were nearly black, watching him with an unmistakably hungry expression.  Noctis pulled back and flicked his tongue over the tip teasingly, his tongue probing into the sensitive slit, and Gladio made a sound something between a growl and a moan.  Despite Noctis’ lack of experience, there was no doubt that his shield was getting off on this. Big time. Noctis grinned cheekily up at the older man.

“You love this, don’t you? Your _king_ on his knees before you, worshiping your cock…” Noctis teased, his lips barely brushing over the head of Gladio’s cock, but there was no mistaking how it practically jumped in his hands at his words. 

“Fuck…” Gladio swore, then hissed almost as though he were in pain as Noctis continued to stroke him slowly from base to tip, “You have no idea… wanted this so long…” 

Noctis tilted his head to the side thoughtfully.

“How long?”

“Way longer than I should have,” Gladio admitted, a deep blush staining his cheeks with his words.  Noctis was definitely curious about that rather cryptic answer, but instead of asking his shield to elaborate, he took Gladio’s cock back into his mouth because, damn it, he’d been wanting this for too damned long too. 

It took Noctis a little while before he really felt comfortable.  It was surprisingly difficult to find a good rhythm between sliding his lips up and down Gladio’s cock and sucking, while he tried to breathe at the same time.  But despite this he realized that he could happily do this forever, not caring in the least how his jaw began to ache, because Gladio looked absolutely _wrecked_ , and it was all his doing.  The bigger man was trembling even harder now, unable to completely remain still, the little thrusts of his hips pushed his cock even deeper into Noctis’ mouth, enough to make the younger man’s eyes water slightly from the strain, but he didn’t care. 

He felt Gladio’s hand tangling in his hair, alternating between petting and lightly pulling on the dark strands, and Noctis moaned at the sensation.  Gladio’s hips bucked hard in response, nearly choking him, but the hand on the back of his head kept him firmly in place. Fuck. Noctis was so hard in his jeans that it _hurt_ .  He was just beginning to wonder what it would be like to feel Gladio come down his throat, if he would even be able to swallow it all, or if he’d actually choke on it… and damn… what a way to go… but then Gladio’s fingers tightened almost painfully in his hair, forcibly pulling Noctis off his cock. 

Noctis gasped, breathless and more than a little light headed.  He was vaguely aware of Gladio manhandling him back to his feet, though his legs felt numb and didn’t really want to hold him up.  That didn’t really matter though, because Gladio was doing a pretty good job of supporting him while his tongue fucked Noctis’ mouth… and the younger man could only whimper while his fingers clutched desperately at his shield’s strong shoulders.  Knowing that Gladio was tasting himself in his mouth made his cock throb even harder. Noctis was so turned on right now he could barely think.

Then Gladio was turning him around and forcing him back against the rough stone outcropping.  Noctis’ fingers scrambled for purchase, his entire body shaking with arousal as the elder man’s hands reached around to work open his jeans and shove them, along with his underwear, down his thighs.  Noctis whimpered and shivered when the cool morning air brushed teasingly along his ass and cock, then he moaned when Gladios warm hands began to firmly knead the globes of his ass.

“So fucking pretty,” Gladio growled into his ear, his fingers slipping between his cheeks to tease his hole and then even further down to cup and play with his balls.  Noctis thrust his ass back into the older man’s hands, silently begging for more. Gladio sighed against the back of his neck, “When we get back into town, I’m making Iggy get us separate hotel rooms, and I’m going to spend all night fucking you right through the mattress, my _king_.”

Noctis wondered if it was possible to pass out from lack of blood to the brain because it had suddenly all traveled to his dick at once.  Gladio suckled on the side of his neck for a few blissful moments before he continued.

“I’m afraid this is going to have to do for now,” Gladio said, holding Noctis by the hips firmly while he slid his cock between his thighs, the blunt tip coming to rest behind his balls.  Noctis instinctively tightened his thighs, holding Gladio firmly between them and the elder man groaned in approval before he started to thrust between his legs.

It wasn’t what either of them _really_ wanted, but it wasn’t as though they’d come out here prepared for _that_ , so Noctis decided this was an acceptable compromise.  It still felt good, surprisingly good, to feel the hot length of Gladio’s thick shaft sliding between his thighs, saliva and precum slicking the way, teasing the sensitive skin beneath his hole, and rubbing against his balls. The sound of Gladio’s hips slapping against his ass and the elder man grunting into his ear made his blood heat up even more, and when Gladio’s hand finally wrapped around Noctis’ straining cock, he couldn’t contain the shout of pleasure that ripped from his throat. 

“Fuck… yeah… that’s it… so good…” Gladio’s voice washed over him like warm molasses, and Noctis began to tremble.  He was panting so hard he was nearly hyperventilating as he pressed his forehead against the cool stone in front of him, though it did nothing to cool him down.  Noctis felt like he was burning up from the inside out and if it was this good now, he couldn’t even imagine…

“Gladio…” Noctis whimpered, “I’m gonna… fuck…”

“Yeah, do it for me, baby…” and that was all Noctis needed to come harder than he’d ever had in his entire life.  Gladio’s hand continued to stroke him through his orgasm, milking every last drop he had. Even once there was nothing left, Noctis felt like he might come again anyway when Gladio groaned in his ear and he felt the older man’s cum spill between this thighs. 

“Fuck… fuck…” Noctis murmured over and over and Gladio hummed in agreement.  At that point he didn’t really want to move, but he didn’t resist either when Gladio urged him to turn around.  He definitely didn’t complain as the older man kissed him again deep and languid. If all he ever did for the rest of his life was kiss Gladio then he would die a happy man. 

His stomach, unfortunately, had other ideas and the moment was broken when it suddenly rumbled loudly.  Gladio immediately began to laugh and Noctis responded by punching his shoulder none too gently.

“Come on, let’s get cleaned up, and get you fed, Princess,” Gladio’s voice was teasing but his expression was infinitely fond.  They decided to return to the lake to wash off because even though it would leave them both smelling like pond water, at least they wouldn’t return to camp smelling like sex.  Though Noctis had a feeling that their friends were going to know anyway that _something_ had happened between him and Gladio, since the older man couldn’t seem to stop touching him as they walked back to camp. Whether it was a strong hand against his back, an arm thrown over his shoulders, or warm fingers curling around his own practically engulfing his hand. 

Just as they made it within sight of the haven, Noctis stopped walking and tugged on Gladio’s hand to halt him as well.  Seemingly on the same page, no words were exchanged as they kissed slowly and thoroughly, knowing it would be a while before they could do so again without an audience. 

When they finally parted, reluctantly, Noctis gazed up into his shield’s molten eyes and grinned.

“I’m holding you to that promise, you know,” he said.  When Gladio gave him a questioning look, Noctis elaborated, “The part about you fucking me through the mattress.”

The heated look Gladio gave him made Noctis wonder if they would even make it that long.  Noctis stepped away before he decided to tell Gladio to do him again right then and there, and damn the consequences. 

It was just in time because a moment later, they heard Prompto’s excited voice, “Hey, Iggy!  They’re back! Well? Did you catch anything good?!”

“He _definitely_ got something good,” Gladio replied with heavy innuendo without missing a beat, and Noctis’ cheeks immediately began to burn.

“Noct, you okay?  You look like you might have gotten a little too much sun.  Let me find the lotion,” Noctis barely heard Ignis’ concerned words over the roaring in his ears.

Maybe he could convince Ignis and Prompto to take a walk later...


	3. Chapter 3

Noctis could probably be forgiven for forgetting that all of this was merely a temporary respite.  Much like a dream, and sooner or later, he would be forced to wake up.

But for the moment he was happy.  Genuinely happy, for the first time in… longer than he could remember.  Oh, there had been brief moments of levity here and there before. Moments where he’d smiled and laughed.  But there had always been a shadow looming over him, never very far away, ready to smother out any joy he might find.  Ever since he learned about the fall of Insomnia and the death of his father.

Those shadows had only grown darker later on. 

After Altissia… Luna… Ignis… Gladio… Prompto… One loss after another.  Every minute that passed felt as if a noose was tightening around his throat, bit by bit.  Grief choking his soul until there was nothing left but pure desperation not to lose what little he had left.  But even that was not enough for the fates, apparently, because soon they would demand not only his soul, but his life as well. 

It wasn’t fair.  It had never been fair.  But, as they say, life was never fair. 

Those shadows seemed far away now.  There was a light in Noctis’ eyes and a bounce in his step that had not been there since before they’d left Insomnia.  Prompto and Ignis had definitely noticed the change and had shared some perplexed but pleased looks when they thought Noctis wasn’t looking.  Gladio had noticed as well and wore a very smug grin while they worked to take down the camp and pack up their supplies to leave.

Noctis wasn’t quite prepared for the surprising amount of emotion that hit him upon seeing the Regalia again in all her glory.  She was a little dirty from traveling down so many back roads recently, could definitely use a wash and wax, but she was still beautiful and _whole_ .  Not the burnt wreckage that had been Noctis’ last memory of his father’s beloved car that had carried them so far. 

He let his hand trail lovingly along the roof, allowing himself to recall how safe he had always felt riding along with his father when he was a child.  Noctis was so lost in thought that he jumped a little when he felt Gladio press up against him from behind and all but purred in his ear.

“Should I be jealous?”

Noctis replied with a snort and elbowed his shield playfully in the stomach.  Gladio responded by groping his ass, making Noctis yelp slightly in surprise. Thankfully Ignis was too busy loading their supplies into the trunk to notice the exchange.  Prompto, however, had seen _everything_ judging by his wide eyes and the surprised squeaking sounds he started making.  Ignis looked up from what he was doing, his eyes moving between Prompto’s slack jaw, Noctis’ burning face, and Gladio’s innocent expression that was fooling noone with a frown, wondering what he’d missed. 

* * *

Soon they were on the road, heading back to Lestallum to turn in a few hunting bounties and replenish their supplies.  It was a long drive but it was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly but it wasn’t too hot. The top of the Regalia was down.  Ignis was behind the wheel, expertly navigating down the winding roads. Prompto busied himself with taking pictures of the scenery as they passed. Gladio was engrossed with a new book he’d bought from their latest rest stop.  Noctis couldn’t help but take it all in with a fond expression.

Noctis felt like he’d finally woken from a bad dream. 

When Prompto started making some noise about wanting to stop to get some better pictures of the area, Noctis didn’t have the heart to refuse him.  Ignis pulled the Regalia off the road onto a little used dirt path, and they began hiking up through the wooded slopes. Prompto ran ahead snapping pictures of birds, flowers, or anything that caught his eye.  Ignis followed at a more leisurely pace, and Noctis hung back with Gladio, a smile on his face.

After a time, Gladio bumped into his shoulder playfully. 

“You’re in a good mood,” he observed.  Noctis grinned as he watched Prompto attempt to chase after a small family of squirrels, trying to get a decent picture. 

“Is that a bad thing?” he asked, turning his attention to the taller man and giving him an inviting look through his eyelashes.  Gladio took the bait, immediately crowding Noctis’ body up against a nearby tree, somewhat out of sight of the others.

“Nope.  Not at all,” Gladio replied as he leaned in to kiss Noctis. 

A startled yelp from Prompto followed by Ignis’ shouting had them breaking apart immediately.  They ran after their friends who thankfully had not gotten too far ahead to find that Prompto had somehow fallen into a Griffon nest.  The young were already quite large and nearly fully feathered, though probably unable to fly just yet. That made them no less dangerous, however, their claws and beaks sharp enough to tear a man to pieces in minutes, and they had apparently decided that Prompto was their next meal. 

The younger man had a few new scratches on his arms but thankfully seemed relatively unharmed so far.  Ignis was doing a good job fending off two of the young griffons, allowing Prompto to scramble away from the third… though not without sacrificing a boot to the hungry youngling.  A small sacrifice, to be sure.

Unfortunately the griffon quickly realized there wasn’t anything actually tasty inside the boot, and abandoned it to leap after Prompto.  In an instant, Gladio charged into the fray, his greatsword materializing out of nowhere, and with one swing managed to nearly decapitate the young griffon before it could shred Prompto to a pulp.  The two remaining griffon younglings seeing their sibling die began to back away from them, crying in fear, and that was when dread began to crawl down Noctis’ spine like ice water.

“We need to get out of here!  Now!” Almost as soon as the words left his mouth an ear splitting screech echoed from overhead and a huge griffon landed with enough force to shake the ground they were standing on.  The griffon regarded Gladio with furious eyes and reared up, roaring with all the fury of a mother protecting her young.

It charged at Gladio with a terrifying speed and ferocity, and the man barely had time to bring up his sword to act as a shield to deflect the attacks.  Prompto, Ignis, and Noctis did everything they could to try to distract the griffon, to divert her attention to give Gladio some breathing room, but the mother griffon was relentless.  Practically ignoring their attacks, and solely focused on killing the man that had killed her baby.

Noctis heard Gladio cry out in pain.  Saw a flash of red as a glancing blow from the beast's claws caught the older man in the side.  At least, Noctis hoped it was a glancing blow because if it wasn’t, the griffon could just as easily have gutted the man he loved.  As though in slow motion, Noctis watched Gladio fall. Saw the greatsword fly from the man’s hand to land several feet away. Watched as the huge beast reared back to finish the job. 

Noctis didn’t think.  He didn’t have time to think.  He immediately warped in front of Gladio, putting himself between his shield and the griffon.  He brought up his hands and his eyes began to glow with a bright purple light as he called on the crystal’s power.  The beast hit the magical barrier that Noctis had barely managed to raise in time with the force of a freight train.  Noctis almost stumbled back from the sheer force of it, but he managed to hold his ground... and push back. The huge blast of power knocked the griffon back across the clearing.  The sounds of pain it made when it landed and the way it favored its left side told Noctis that he’d clearly injured the beast.

He hoped that was the end of it.  He did not want to kill the griffon.  It had only been trying to protect its young.  They were the ones who’d started this by accidentally disturbing its nest.  Unfortunately as the beast began to charge at them again, Noctis was left with little choice.  Dark purple flames began to dance along his weapon as he launched himself at the griffon with a merciless attack.  Ghostly weapons swirled around him, hacking at the creature from multiple directions and blocking any attacks it tried to make. 

Once Noctis saw an opening, he didn’t hesitate to take it, plunging his sword through the beast’s ribcage and directly into its heart.  The creature made a truly pitiful sound as it stumbled and finally fell down dead at his feet. The ghostly weapons of his ancestors disappeared and Noctis allowed the power of the crystal to fade.  What he didn’t expect was the sudden wave of dizziness that hit him when it did. Damn, he hadn’t felt this drained from using the crystal’s magic ever since he’d acquired the ring…

Oh…

He hadn’t gotten the ring yet.  Altissia, Luna, and the fight against Leviathan hadn’t happened. Wouldn’t happen for several more weeks.  Calling on the royal arms and using that much power from the crystal without the ring to focus it properly… that could be bad…

“Noct!” Gladio’s shout had him looking up.  Noctis was swaying dangerously on his feet, but he still managed a small smile seeing Prompto helping Gladio up.  There was quite a bit of blood on the older man’s side, but at least it seemed like his insides were still inside him where they belonged.  That was good. Damn… when had it gotten so cold? Hadn’t Iggy said it was supposed to stay warm today?

Suddenly he was falling, and it probably would have hurt when he landed, if Ignis wasn’t suddenly there, catching him, and easing him down much more gently.  Ignis was speaking to him, but Noctis was having trouble understanding the words themselves. He only knew that the older man sounded worried. Scared even. He’d never liked it when Ignis sounded scared.  That was usually a very bad thing.

“Noct… Noct!  Keep your eyes open!  Noct!”

He tried.  He really did.  But everything blurred and faded away against his will.


	4. Chapter 4

“Is he okay? I mean, he’s _going_ to be okay, right?” his blonde friend’s worried voice seemed both close and very far away. 

“Prompto! For fucks sake, sit down before you fall on him!” Gladio’s near shout was definitely louder, and the sound of his lover’s voice made Noctis want to smile a little even though the older man sounded angry.  No, not angry. Scared. There was a slight difference, though few could tell.

“Prompto, please.  Noct will be fine, sit down, you’re distracting me,” Ignis’ voice was as calm as ever.  His advisor had always been very difficult to read. But even Noct could detect the slight wobble in the normally stoic man’s tone that betrayed how worried he really was. 

What had happened? Why were they all so concerned?

Noctis knew he was in the Regalia.  He could tell that much from the familiar sound of the engine and road noise without even opening his eyes.  Ignis was taking the turns a little faster than he probably should, but other than that, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.  The fresh air blowing through his hair told him that the top was down, even though it had gotten colder at some point during the day.  Still, it was relaxing and the familiarity of it all nearly lulled him back to sleep.

Before he could drop off, however, he felt warm fingers brush through his hair, making Noctis want to purr.  It took him a few moments to realize the ‘pillow’ beneath his head was quite warm and… not all that soft for a pillow, honestly.  Probably because he was laying down in the back of the Regalia, and his ‘pillow’ was actually his shield’s lap. Which… okay… was actually rather nice. Especially the way Gladio continued to tenderly pet his hair.  Noctis could definitely get used to this. He hoped Prompto had gotten a picture.

Gladio liked to act tough and he was definitely rough around the edges in many ways.  But there was an unmistakable softness to the man as well. It was a side usually only shown to those he really cared about. Mostly to his little sister. But it never failed to make Noctis’ heart flutter in his chest whenever that softness was directed towards him, much like now. 

He felt Gladio shift slightly beneath him, and heard the man grunt in discomfort. 

“Are you sure you’re…” Ignis started to ask, only to be cut off by Gladio’s sharply growled response.

“I’m fine.”

But it was a lie.  Noctis could tell. Gladio wasn’t fine.  He was scared and he was in pain. That realization more than anything started to push Noctis closer towards consciousness, and as he struggled to open his eyes he was finally able to detect the subtle, but unmistakable, scent of blood despite the fresh air flowing through the car.

“Gladdy…” Noctis’ voice was barely above a whisper.  He heard Gladio suck in a surprised breath.  Felt the man tense underneath him when Noctis’ eyes fluttered open. He was having a little trouble focusing, but he could see that Gladio wasn’t wearing a shirt (again).  Instead he had a thick layer of bandages wrapped around his middle and they were stained dark brown with dried blood. Noctis frowned, “You’re… hurt?”

“Noct… no baby, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me,” Gladio all but whispered, his voice breaking a little, and it pulled Noctis’ attention away from the obvious wounds to his shield’s face.   _Why are you lying to me?_ He wanted to ask, but he could only stare at the man as his worried face swam in and out of focus.  Gladio was noticeably pale, and there was no mistaking how the older man’s normally rock steady hands were trembling where they touched him.  Still, Gladio offered him a strained smile.

“You just rest, we’re almost there…”

 _Almost where?_ Noctis wanted to ask, but they were interrupted by Prompto practically climbing over the front seat again to look in the back.

“Noct! You’re awake!  Iggy, he’s awake! Hey, how you feeling, man? Don’t worry, you’re going to be alright.  Right guys? He’s going to be alright…”

Noctis wanted to reassure the younger man that, yes, he was going to be just fine.  Why wouldn’t he be? But Prompto wasn’t really letting him get a word in edgewise. Even if he could, Noctis soon found himself unable to speak at all as something thick and wet welled up in the back of his throat, practically choking him. 

He coughed, trying to clear whatever it was.  But once he started coughing he realized he couldn’t stop.  Pain began to flare up through his entire body with every weak spasm and Noctis realized he could taste blood in his mouth.  What was happening? What…

“Shit! Prompto, give me another potion!” Gladio shouted as he attempted to support him in a way so Noctis wouldn’t choke on his own blood, but it wasn’t very successful.  Prompto cursed and scrambled in the front seat for a moment before handing something quickly to Gladio.

“It’s our last one,” Prompto informed the older man, his voice breaking.  There were tears streaming down the younger man’s face. Ignis’ grip on the steering wheel was so tight it was a wonder it didn’t bend under the strain. 

“He’s going to make it,” Gladio growled fiercely, almost daring anyone to suggest otherwise.  He broke the potion bottle over Noctis and the glittering green magic immediately disbursed over him. The pain in his chest began to ease and the coughing ceased, allowing Noctis to take in a much needed breath, even though it rattled wetly in his throat. 

“It’s okay.  You’re going to be okay, you hear me, Noct?” Gladio repeated over and over as he gently wiped the blood away from his mouth and face.  Noctis wanted to say something, anything, to reassure the other man. He hated the broken quality in his shield’s normally so confident voice and the way his eyes glittered with unshed tears.

“Don’t leave us.  Don’t leave me…” his shield whispered only loud enough for Noctis to hear.

 _I won’t…_ Noctis wanted to say, but he couldn’t even move his lips much less form the actual words.  Probably just as well. Since it was a promise he knew he couldn’t keep even if he wanted to.

* * *

Everything passed in a bit of a blur after that, fading in and out, and he couldn’t tell whether he was awake, dreaming, or lost in a memory.

He thought he heard his father’s voice speaking to him.  Low and reassuring. Warm arms wrapped around him, holding his small body securely against his broad chest.  Promising to keep him safe forever.

_“It’s going to be okay, Noct.  You hear me? Just stay with me… Damn it, Ignis, step on it!”_

It was cold.  It was raining and he was lying in the mud, covered in blood. It wasn’t all his own blood, but a lot of it was.  There was a line of fire down his back, and it was the worst pain he’d ever experienced in his life. He couldn’t move, but it wasn’t due to the heavy weight of his dead nanny lying on top of him.  He just… couldn’t move. He could barely breathe. Every breath he took, he tasted blood in his mouth. Daddy… where was his daddy? His daddy had promised to keep him safe…

There was the loud screeching of tires.  The blaring of a car horn. He felt himself being lifted by strong arms and cradled tenderly against a warm chest as though he were the most fragile thing in the world.  There were several people shouting at once. Noct couldn’t really understand any of it. He heard himself whimper in agony. Why did everything hurt so much?

_“How did this even happen?  It’s like he’s been shredded from the inside!”_

_“Can you help him or not!”_

He was sitting in his chair in the middle of a beautiful garden.  The sun was shining warmly overhead, and he could hear the sound of water bubbling happily from numerous fountains all around him. Despite the amazing beauty however, Noctis was sad.  His father had thought that letting him stay outside in the garden would cheer him up, but it only depressed the boy more. Knowing he could not get up from the chair and explore as he so longed to.  Seeing what he wanted so close and unable to touch it.

His father said it wouldn’t be that way for much longer.  That soon he would be able to walk and run and play again.  That was why they were here in Tenebrae to see the Oracle. She was going to help Noctis heal.  But that really didn’t comfort Noctis all that much. After all, several doctors and healers had already come to see him before, saying they would help him, and none of them had been able to.  So what made now any different?

Noctis was pulled from his brooding thoughts when he heard the sound of a young girl humming a song he didn’t recognize.  She didn’t notice him at first, she seemed so focused on the flowers, as she strolled leisurely through the garden. The sunlight made her pale blonde hair glitter like gold and her blue dress fluttered delicately in the wind. She looked kind of like a flower herself, Noctis thought. 

He thought she might not notice him at all, simply pass him by, but then she looked over to where he was sitting suddenly, even though he hadn’t made a sound, and stopped. Noctis shifted nervously, feeling as though he’d somehow done something wrong even though he’d only been sitting there.  Then she gave him the sweetest smile as she came over to his chair and knelt down to be more on his level.

“Hello.  Are you Prince Noctis?” she asked softly, her pale blue eyes wide and guileless.  It was probably no surprise that she knew who he was just by looking at him. Who else could he be, but the ‘crippled’ prince? He nodded sullenly and looked away to stare at the fountain, a dark mood falling over him as it had increasingly ever since he’d been injured. 

She tilted her head to the side, trying to catch his eyes again, but he stubbornly kept them turned away. 

“My name is Lunafreya.  My mother is the Oracle.  She told me you’d be coming,” she offered.  Noctis merely shrugged. She pursed her lips but continued on, undaunted, despite his obvious dismissals, “Would you like to go for a walk around the garden?”

“I can’t walk,” he replied bitterly, finally looking at her again, only to glare.  He’d gotten very good at glaring recently too. Still, she seemed unaffected by his dark mood. 

“I know…” she said sympathetically, and somehow, without pity.  Then her expression brightened, “How about I ride with you, then?”

Noctis’ face morphed into confusion in spite of himself, as she she stood up and urged him to scoot over so that she could sit in the wheelchair beside him.  It was a bit of a tight fit, despite the fact that the chair was rather large and the two of them rather skinny. He’d never been able to make it move himself, and had to be pushed everywhere.  But now she instructed him to push on one of the wheels while she pushed the other, and together they managed to get it to start rolling. Somehow the two of them managed to make a game out of it, and that was how their parents had found them a couple of hours later.  Two children giggling uncontrollably as they spun the wheelchair around in circles as fast as they could.

When he finally noticed his father watching him, it was the first time he'd seen his father smile in weeks. 

* * *

Noctis opened his eyes to a plain gray ceiling that he didn’t recognize.  Dust motes danced in the sunlight that spilled across the bed he was laying in.  His head felt heavy and sore, his throat felt as dry as a desert, and his entire body throbbed dully with every beat of his heart.  It wasn’t a pleasant sensation in the least.

He began searching through his fragmented memories, trying to uncover the secret of how he’d ended up here in his current condition.  But after a few moments gave up, feeling it was more trouble than it was worth, since it only made his head hurt more. Hopefully whatever it was, it had been something heroic, and not something embarrassing that Prompto would tease him about for the rest of his life. 

Speaking of… a slight movement down near his feet drew Noctis’ attention to where his friend slept half in a chair and half sprawled over the foot of the bed Noctis was laying in.  He could feel Prompto’s fingers wrapped lightly around his ankle, and Noctis couldn’t help but smile slightly. Seemed he couldn’t get away from Prompto’s tendency to snuggle in his sleep, even now. 

“Prom…?” Noctis tried to get his friend’s attention, but the voice that left his throat was so weak and hoarse he barely recognized himself.  Noctis coughed softly and winced. His throat felt like he’d been swallowing shards of glass. What the hell had happened to him?

But it seemed like the pathetic quality of his voice, or the slight movement, was enough to wake his friend anyway because the younger man began to stir and sit up.  His blonde hair was in even more of a disarray than usual, sticking up weirdly on the side. The young man blinked owlishly to get his bearings and Noctis thought Prompto looked adorable, kind of like a baby chocobo, though he’d never say that aloud. 

“Hey…” Noctis tried again to get his attention, and this time it worked.  He watched as his friend’s blue eyes went wide in surprise, and a smile split his face from ear to ear, even though it looked like Prompto was also on the verge of tears.

“Noct!  You’re awake!” the sheer volume of his friend’s excited voice made Noctis wince a little, but he still offered Prompto a shaky grin.  Prompto was out of his seat in a flash, settling beside him on the bed instead, as close as he could get without actually sitting _on_ Noctis.  Noctis didn’t mind really, except even the slight jostling made him wince again.  Prompto was immediately apologetic.

“I’m sorry.  Sorry. I’m just so… we were all so _worried_!  How are you feeling?  Do you need anything?”

“Water?” Noctis managed to croak, barely legible in his opinion, but it spurred Prompto into action. 

“Right, course, hold on,” the younger man said as he fumbled a little with a pitcher and plastic cup on the bedside table.  His hands were shaking. Soon he was holding the cup with a straw to Noctis’ lips with one hand, the other sliding under Noctis’ head to help support him while he drank, “Slowly now, not too much, don’t want to overdo it…”

After a few sips of water, Noctis began to feel a little better.  His throat soothed and his head a little clearer. He began to glance around the room again as Prompto set the cup aside, and realized he was in some kind of hospital room.  Noctis hadn’t really noticed at first given the color scheme and warm lighting. All things considered, it was rather cozy. Not at all like the stark white infirmary back at the citadel.  But the slight antiseptic smell, and the medical monitoring equipment still gave it away.

“Ignis took Gladio out to get some fresh air and food. Had to practically drag him out the door.  Guy has barely left your side all week. They should be back soon,” Prompto informed him, probably having misinterpreted Noctis’ examination of the room.  Still, it was welcome news, since he _did_ want to see Gladio.  But then Noctis began to further examine the information.

“A week?” he whispered in shock.  He had been in this room, unconscious, for an entire week? Prompto nodded, his lower lip trembling a little as he looked at Noctis with watery eyes.

“I… we… weren’t sure you were going to... “ Prompto’s voice broke over the last words and Noctis could only stare at the younger man, stunned. 

“What... happened?  I don’t…”

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry, Noct.  This was all my fault. I… I saw the nest.  I thought I could get a picture of the babies without them noticing me, but my foot slipped and I… I’m so sorry…” Prompto was apologizing and openly crying now.  His words managed to jog loose something in Noctis’ head and he finally began to remember what had happened.

The griffon nest, the babies attacking Prompto, Gladio jumping in to save him, and then the mother showing up… Noctis still couldn’t quite believe it had all really happened. Nothing like that had happened before. But with one little change, one small decision to stop on the side of the road where they hadn’t before, it nearly ended up getting them all killed.  It, was a very sobering thought.

Noctis reached over to take Prompto’s hand gently, trying to offer the younger man some kind of comfort, even though he seemed nearly inconsolable.

“Prom… come on, it wasn’t your fault.  It just… happened. It sucks, but you can’t blame yourself.  You could just as easily say it was my fault for agreeing to stop in the first place,” his words were meant to reassure, but at the same time, they were an apology.  Because even though Prompto didn’t know it, it _was_ Noctis’ fault.  All of it. He’d been stupid, careless, and… selfish.  Had he really believed he could play with time itself with zero consequences?  What if next time the consequences were even worse? He was such an idiot…

“Noct… you know it’s not your fault,” Prompto replied, still sniffling, but at least he’d stopped crying. 

“Then, it’s not yours either.”

“Noct…” If Prompto was going to say anything else, it was interrupted when the door to the room suddenly opened.  Prompto immediately dropped Noctis’ hand as though burned and scrambled away from him. Noctis was frankly stunned by the reaction, but before he could question it, his attention was drawn away from his friend by the two men entering the room. 

Ignis came in first, and Noctis was shocked by how… tired the man looked.  There were dark bags under his eyes behind his glasses and a slouch to his posture that Noctis wasn’t sure he’d ever really seen before.  It was usually Ignis nagging Noct to stand up straight, after all. Noctis couldn’t even imagine what kind of stress Ignis must have been under these last few days for him to look so damned defeated.  Upon seeing him however, Ignis’ eyes immediately went wide and his mouth dropped open in shock.

“Noct…” Ignis’ breath hitched, and Noctis never would have thought something as simple as his name could carry such an emotional weight.  He was afraid if his normally stoic advisor actually started crying or something, he was going to start crying too and not be able to stop. 

“What is it? Is he…” Gladio’s nearly frantic voice as he shoved his way past Ignis drew Noctis’ attention, and he couldn’t help but be stunned by his shield’s appearance.  Gladio looked even worse than Ignis did, if that was even possible. If someone told him that the older man hadn’t slept, eaten, or even bathed for an entire week, he would have believed them.  His eyes were absolutely wild. Filled with near panic that Noctis didn’t even think was possible. Not from Gladio who had always been so… unshakable. When Gladio’s eyes finally fell on him, the man absolutely froze.  Noctis had no idea what to even say.

“H… hey…”

That at least worked to break the older man's paralysis, and in an instant Gladio was there, taking the space that Prompto had previously occupied.  Much like Prompto, Gladio’s hands hovered over him as though he wanted to grab him in a crushing embrace, but at the same time too afraid to touch him lest he somehow break him.  It wasn’t until Noctis reached up to gently brush his fingers over Gladio’s cheek, feeling the wetness there, that the man seemed to utterly crumble. Burying his face against Noctis’ chest with shaking sobs. 

Noctis was stunned.  His eyes flitted between his broken shield, Prompto’s guilt ridden face, and Ignis’ utterly unreadable expression with confusion.  This… this was nothing like the calm acceptance that his three friends had displayed upon hearing of his inevitable demise in the present.  A necessary sacrifice to bring back the dawn. Somehow he’d begun to believe that his death would not affect his friends much at all.  Or maybe that's just what he needed to believe. In a way it had been almost comforting to know that his loss would not cause them pain. Or at least, it would be a pain easy to recover from.  After all, they'd already done it once when he'd been locked away inside the crystal for ten long years. 

Now… he wondered if he was wrong.  Had his older friends only been concealing their grief for his benefit?  Or had he really changed so much already?

What had he done?


	5. Chapter 5

Noctis ran his fingers slowly through the length of Gladio’s hair.  It was unwashed and severely knotted in some places, but he didn’t really mind that.  It was comforting just to touch him. To feel him so close. To know he was alive and in one piece. Physically, in one piece, at least.  Emotionally…

Noctis couldn’t deny that he was concerned. 

He’d never seen Gladio like this before.  Ever. He never _imagined_ seeing Gladio, of all people, break down the way he had.  Even in the most dire of situations, Gladio was always so in control.  A pillar of strength whenever Noctis was at his weakest. When things were at their worst, it was Gladio who remained calm, who wasn’t afraid to sometimes literally kick Noctis’ ass into gear when he needed it, and remind him why he needed to keep fighting no matter what. 

He had never seen Gladio cry before.  Not like this. Gladio hadn’t cried when Insomnia had fallen.  He hadn’t cried when he’d learned about his father’s death or when Iris’ fate had been unknown, and she was the most important person in his life.  Or if he had, he hadn’t done it in front of Noctis.

To see Gladio practically sobbing into his chest now, not only in front of him, but Ignis and Prompto… it was jarring to say the least.  Noctis had no idea what to do or say.

It was Ignis who finally broke the uncomfortable silence by suggesting that they summon a doctor to check on Noctis now that he was awake.  At those words Gladio took in a deep shuddering breath and immediately began to pull himself together. He straightened and rubbed at the tear tracks on his face almost angrily.  Though his eyes remained red, he finally gave the nod to Ignis once he was composed.

Even though it was Ignis who’d made the suggestion, it was Prompto who scurried out of the room to fetch one of the doctors.  The younger man quickly returned with an elderly woman with mostly gray hair and kind features. She smiled at Noctis upon entering the room.

“It’s good to see you awake, Mr. Gar.  You had us all quite concerned,” she said before she began the examination. Noctis couldn’t help but grin slightly at the fake name his friends had given and raised an eyebrow at Gladio in amusement when her back was turned.  The answering upward twitch at the corners of the older man’s lips was rewarding.

Throughout the doctor’s examination Gladio remained at Noctis’ side, their fingers twined together. Despite being such a big guy, she moved around Gladio with a practiced ease and did not even attempt to ask him to get out of the way.  Noctis wondered if she instinctively knew it would be a futile effort, or if someone _had_ tried to get Gladio to move before.  Judging by Gladio’s current behavior, it probably had not gone well. 

By the time the doctor was finished, Noctis could barely keep his eyes open any longer.  She seemed quite pleased by his improvement, but wished to keep him a few more days at least for observation to make sure there were no further complications.  Noctis was too tired to argue or inquire what she meant by _further_ complications.  But Noctis wasn’t an idiot.  Just judging by his friend’s reactions he knew it had been bad.  In fact, he was probably lucky to be alive.

She left with a promise to come check up on him later.  Ignis and Prompto left soon after. But Noctis didn’t miss the hesitant way Prompto started to approach the bed, probably to give him a hug or something, only to quickly change his mind when he looked at Gladio.  In turn, Gladio’s face was as blank as stone but his eyes were hard. Noctis inwardly sighed.

As soon as the door shut behind their two friends, Noctis turned a scolding look on Gladio.

“Please tell me you’re not giving Prompto a hard time about this,” he said wearily.  Gladio frowned but said nothing, giving Noctis his answer. He sighed again, “It wasn’t his fault.  Don’t be angry at him.”

But Noctis knew that was easier said than done.  He remembered well how Gladio had reacted when Ignis had been hurt.  How he’d blamed Noctis for their friend’s injury that had robbed him of his sight.  Gladio had said some truly hurtful things to him then, lashing out in anger and guilt. Accusing Noctis of being a coward and shirking his duty.  Hitting him below the belt when he’d been at his lowest.

It had strained their relationship nearly to its breaking point, and honestly, they’d never really recovered from it.  Ignis’ stern intervention had forced them to mend some of those wounds, if only so they could continue on and work together without constantly being at each other’s throats.  But they’d never had the chance to repair the friendship and trust they’d once shared. There hadn’t been time.

Noctis had forgiven Gladio a long time ago.  Gladio had definitely been out of line, but he’d also been right, in a way.  Ten long years inside the crystal had given him a new perspective on many things.  At the same time, Noctis couldn’t help but regret all the time they’d spent angry at each other near the end. 

He definitely didn’t want Prompto to have to experience something like that.

“Gladio…” Noctis began, only to be silenced by a heavy sigh from his shield.

“I’m not angry at him,” Gladio finally said, looking away and his shoulders sagged as though the weight of the world had been suddenly dropped onto them.  Noctis squeezed Gladio’s hand gently, urging the man to continue.

“I’m angry at myself,” he finally admitted, and something in his tone reminded Noctis of just before Gladio had left them to face Gilgamesh.  In an effort to prove himself capable of defending the 'Chosen King’ Gladio had nearly gotten himself killed. Noctis knew Gladio was proud of his accomplishment, and Noctis was proud for him.  But... Gladio could have just as easily died on that quest. Hell, that had been the most _likely_ outcome given how many had tried and failed the test. His sense of worth had been shaken by Ravus and Gladio had been willing to sacrifice his life to prove that he wasn’t a 'weak shield’.  It was a little terrifying to imagine what Gladio might do if that confidence was shaken again.

His fingers tightened around Gladio’s hand unconsciously, and his heart clenched, but before he could say anything, Gladio spoke again. 

“And I’m angry at you,” he said, and Noctis blinked in surprise.

“Me?”

Gladio finally looked at him again, and his eyes were nearly burning with intensity. 

“You nearly tore yourself apart with that stunt!”  Gladio all but growled, and Noctis had the good grace to look a little sheepish.

“I might have gotten a little carried away…” he admitted, because he _had_ made a miscalculation calling on the crystal’s power the way he had without the ring, but he still wasn’t about to apologize for his actions.  Because as horrible as it had been for them to see him like that, what he’d done had still saved Gladio’s life. He was never going to regret that. 

“A little… God damn it, Noct! What the hell were you thinking!  You’re the king! You can’t-”

“I can.  I did. I would do it again,” Noctis interrupted calmly.  Gladio looked like he was on the verge of throttling him. Noctis squeezed his hand again.  He wondered what Gladio- this Gladio, not the one in Noctis’ present- would think if he knew that one day Noctis would be forced to sacrifice his life not only for him, but for the whole _world_. 

“Noct-”

“Gladio, you’re my friend, you’re my lover, you’re my shield.  Not my master. You have no right to ask me not to protect the man I love,” Noctis stated calmly and firmly.  Gladio blinked at him for several moments, completely speechless. He looked like he didn’t know whether to punch him or kiss him.  In the end Gladio sighed heavily and shook his head.

“I am so kicking your ass about this later,” he muttered darkly.  Noctis snorted softly in amusement.

“I’m tired, and you’re exhausted.  Come here,” Noctis ordered, tugging lightly on the older man’s hand to encourage him to lay down.  Gladio went without resistance. It was an awkward fit, but they managed. Gladio’s head rested lightly on his chest, over his heart, while Noctis wrapped his arms around the older man as much as he could. 

He wasn’t surprised when Gladio fell asleep almost immediately, the man had been running on fumes.  Despite his own exhaustion, Noctis’ troubled thoughts kept him awake long after.

He had not expected things to turn out like this when he’d accepted the ‘gift’ offered to him in the present.  Luna had told him he must be careful of what he changed, but he had not expected to be nearly killed less than twenty-four hours after his arrival in the past.  Worse, one small seemingly insignificant decision had nearly killed Prompto and Gladio as well. What would happen to his friends in the present if something happened to them in the past while Noctis was here?  Would they simply… cease to exist in the present? What if Noctis _did_ die here in the past?

It was a mistake coming here.  As much as it pained him… he knew what he had to do. 

Perhaps it _was_ better to never have loved at all, than to love and lost. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first story in this series has been edited slightly since I started writing this one, as my plans for how this story is going to go have drastically changed. You don't really have to reread the first story, just know that changes in the past will now be more 'permanent' than were implied before. I apologies for any inconsistencies.


	6. Chapter 6

Noctis could never be described as a good patient, but given the scare he’d given his friends, he was willing to mostly follow the doctors orders and spend the next few days resting and allowing his body to heal.  His friends in turn would spend most of the day with him, entertaining him and keeping him from going too stir crazy.

He and Prompto played a lot of King’s Knight and Gladio would sometimes read to him when the others were not around.  Thankfully things had gotten a little better between Prompto and Gladio over the last few days. Gladio had stopped glaring at the younger man whenever Prompto was in the room, at least.  Noctis’ threat of no sex unless Gladio made up with Prompto probably had a lot to do with that.

Ignis meanwhile had taken it upon himself to do most of the tasks that the nurses would normally have helped Noctis with, like helping him dress, making sure he took his potions on time, and of course preparing his meals.  His advisor had been scandalized by the quality of the food the hospital had offered him, and forbid Noctis from consuming any of it. Not that Noctis minded following that order, since he couldn’t imagine consuming scrambled eggs that actually bounced (as Prompto demonstrated) was healthy for him.  The hospital staff had given up trying to stop Ignis from smuggling in his own freshly prepared meals.

At night, however, Noctis had insisted that they stay at the hotel rather than his hospital room so they could get some much needed rest themselves.  None of his friends had particularly wanted to leave him alone, so they’d compromised by agreeing that _one_ of them would stay with him during the night, and they would rotate, until Noctis was released from the hospital. 

It was during one of these nights alone with Ignis that he finally managed to pry the whole story of what had happened from his reluctant advisor.

Apparently he'd lost consciousness after the battle with the mother griffon, and began convulsing, bleeding profusely from his ears, mouth, and even eyes.  His friends had tried using their limited supply of potions on him which _would_ cause the bleeding to stop, only for it to begin again a short time later. They’d rushed him to Lestallum as fast as they could, since they’d been on their way there anyway and it was the closest town with a hospital in the area.  The doctors were understandably baffled by his condition. Had never even seen anything like it before. He was bleeding internally with no apparent cause.  They tried using various potions, and stronger elixirs, which would seem to work for a time, only for the internal wounds to reopen again mysteriously.  It really was as though his body was continuously ripping itself apart from the inside out, which sounded… disgusting frankly, and probably looked as horrific as it sounded.

It had taken several days, and the hospital's near entire stock of potions, before his wounds finally stopped bleeding for good and he began to recover.  But the most troubling part of the story, perhaps, was that Gladio had flat out refused to let any potions be used on him by Prompto or Ignis even though he’d been bleeding nearly as badly as Noctis during the drive to Lestallum.  Even once they’d finally reached the hospital, he had not allowed any of the doctors to treat his wounds until Noctis had been stabilized. Ignis admitted that for a time he’d been afraid that they were going to lose both him _and_ Gladio.

Understandably, Noctis was not pleased to hear this.  But neither was he surprised.

Ignis sat silently in the chair beside his bed, watching Noctis carefully as he digested this new information.  He had a feeling that his advisor had more to say, but was holding back. Either concerned with overwhelming him, or simply attempting to be tactful.  That never boded well. Eventually, Noctis sighed with resignation.

“What’s on your mind, Specs?”

Ignis hesitated for a few more moments before he began to speak again.

“Your… relationship with Gladio?”

Noctis inwardly winced.  Well, he knew this was coming sooner or later. 

“You don’t have to say anything.  I know what you’re thinking.”

“Do you?” Ignis asked cryptically, making Noctis snort softly.

“You think I’m being foolish, reckless even.  I’m the prince… king… of Lucis. Or at least I will be if we ever manage to beat back the empire.  I don’t exactly have the luxury to… have a _boyfriend_ .  Never mind that I’m already engaged to be married… just imagine the scandal if it got out I am fucking my _male_ retainer,” Noctis said bitterly.  Ignis made a slight face at his vulgarity.

“You must have known all of this before, and yet you began this relationship with Gladio anyway,” Ignis pointed out.  Which, of course he would. Noctis had never been able to slip anything past Specs. Noctis sighed heavily.

“I… made a mistake,” Noctis finally admitted softly.  Even though it wasn’t for the reasons that Ignis might think, it was still true.  Ignis seemed surprised by his words.

“You… intend to break it off with Gladio then?” he asked.  Noctis finally lifted his head to look at his advisor. He hadn’t expected him to sound so surprised. 

“You’re not going to tell me I should?”

Ignis pursed his lips then he took off his glasses and began cleaning them with the edge of his shirt.  Such a simple and familiar gesture… one that Ignis no longer needed to perform in Noctis’ true time… and seeing it made his heart clench unexpectedly.  It was a reminder of just how much Ignis would lose in the near future because of Noctis.

“Originally your marriage to Lady Lunafreya was a necessary stipulation of the peace treaty between Lucis and Niflheim.  At this point it is quite obvious the treaty was a complete farce, so you could hardly be expected to honor those terms.  The people would certainly understand if you decided to end the engagement. As for your… choice in companions… as the King of Lucis you would be expected to produce an heir at some point, and marriage is certainly a valuable tool to create political alliances.  But there are other ways to do both, without the need to take a wife, if that is your wish.”

Noctis stared at Ignis as though he’d grown another head.  In turn, Ignis raised an eyebrow and practically smirked.

“Not what you thought I was going to say after all, highness?” 

“You’re saying I shouldn’t break things off with Gladio?” Noctis asked in disbelief.  Ignis sighed and replaced his glasses. He had an odd look on his face that Noctis couldn’t quite define. 

“There are many things a king must sacrifice for his people, but this… need not be one of them.  You are my king, but you are also my friend, Noctis. As is Gladio. I would… not wish to see either of you hurt needlessly.  Unless… there is something else you are not telling me?”

Noctis found himself looking away guiltily.  It would be so easy to tell Ignis… everything.  Right now Noctis very much wanted to. He could certainly use his friend’s advice on what he should do, but Noctis had already seen the dangers of changing the past.  Certainly telling Ignis everything that was going to happen in the future… could change things drastically. Maybe even catastrophically.

No.  He had to do this himself.  Somehow Noctis had to undo what he’d already changed and… then return to where he belonged.  That was the only way he could be sure…

Ignis sighed again.

“Noctis, just… please be careful.  Do not make a decision rashly. Gladio’s heart… is more fragile than he would let anyone believe.”


	7. Chapter 7

“Dude!  You are _sucking_ today!” Prompto laughed as Noctis lost yet _another_ round of King’s Knight.  Which really wasn’t much of a surprise, given that Noctis hadn’t played the game in over _ten years_ .  He’d had a hard enough time just remembering how his phone _worked_ , much less how to play the game installed on it.  Earlier he’d been able to pass off his abysmal performance on simple exhaustion while he healed.  But at this point Noctis was recovered enough that the doctors had agreed to release him later today, so he didn’t really have that excuse anymore. 

Really, it was becoming a problem, and not just in regards to the stupid video game.  More than once Ignis had given him a concerned look when he brought up something that had only happened ‘a week ago’ and Noctis had been unable to recall the events.  Because for Noctis, it hadn’t been a week or two, it had been _ten years_ .  Again, so far Noctis had been able to play off his slip ups by blaming his recent injury and exhaustion, but that wasn’t going to work forever. 

Even more of a reason for Noctis to do what he had to and return to his own time as soon as possible.  Neither was something he was looking forward to. But it was better than the alternative. He never should have accepted this ‘gift’ in the first place, no matter how well meaning it had been.  Hadn’t his life already proven to him time and time again that he could never have what he wanted?

Everyone he’d ever cared about was hurt, or killed, because of him.  Time and time again he failed to protect those he loved. Luna was killed by Ardyn.  Ignis was blinded trying to save him. Prompto was captured and tortured after Noctis failed to see through Ardyn’s trap.  Gladio… it was probably a miracle that the man hadn’t already died trying to protect Noctis. Though it had been a very near thing if the scar across his chest was any indication. Noctis was well aware how much Gladio’s duty meant to him, but the idea that he’d rather be _dead_ than considered unworthy...

He couldn’t risk causing them even more pain.  He couldn’t risk being the cause of one of their deaths.  He couldn’t risk changing something he shouldn’t and…

“Noct?  You okay?” Prompto’s worried voice pulled him out of the downward spiral of his thoughts, and he managed to give the other man a slight smile even though it didn’t reach his eyes. 

“Yeah, sorry just… lost in thought I guess,” he replied.  Prompto frowned, opened his mouth to say something, but then seemed to change his mind. Instead he smiled brightly and waved his phone tauntingly at Noctis.

“So, you wanna play another game?”

Noctis was saved from further humiliation when the door to his room opened and Gladio walked in. 

“Hey.  Am I interrupting something?” he asked, grinning at the two men. 

“Nope,” Noctis replied with a shake of his head ignoring Prompto’s pout.

“Ignis is finishing up the paperwork to get you released.  Prompto, why don’t you go give him a hand or something,” Gladio suggested, though he didn’t look away from Noctis when he did.  Noctis raised an eyebrow. Prompto gave a heavy sigh, but didn’t object. His boots hit the floor with a loud thud as he hopped up from his seat. 

“You just want me gone so the two of you can do some smooching,” he teased, making kissing faces at Gladio as he passed on his way out the door.  Noctis’ cheeks started to burn but Gladio seemed unfazed, shoving the younger man away playfully, then smacking him hard on the ass on the way out.  He ignored Prompto’s startled yelp and shut the door on him.

Then Gladio smiled at him a way that made Noctis’ heart tumble in his chest.

“Well, he’s not wrong,” the older man admitted with a slight shrug as he came over to sit beside Noctis on the bed.  Noctis knew he should stop Gladio. That he was only making things worse. Every touch, every kiss, only dug the hole deeper, making it harder and more painful to get out. 

But he was weak, selfish, and when Gladio’s lips touched his own it was all he could do not to melt against the older man.  His hands came up to rest on Gladio’s shoulders as the bigger man leaned into him, his weight pressing him back against the pillows propping him up.  Gladio’s tongue flicked teasingly against his lips, silently begging entry, and Noctis opened to him almost without thought. A choked whimper escaped from his throat when the older man’s tongue delved inside his mouth.

His fingers traced along Gladio’s shoulders and found their way into the long hair at the base of his neck.  He felt and heard the older man purr in his chest as Noctis’ fingers combed gently through the soft strands. One of Gladio’s hands wormed its way under the hem of his shirt, fingers ghosting almost light enough to be ticklish over his stomach and side making Noctis shiver. 

The sound of someone clearing their throat in the doorway had Noctis startling.

“Ugh, get a room you two,” Prompto’s voice had them breaking apart, though not before Gladio pressed one last, almost chaste, kiss against his lips.  The elder man grinned at him before turning to their audience.

“Planning to,” Gladio stated smugly, waggling his eyebrows in a way that made Prompto groan loudly. 

Ignis stood in the doorway, a disapproving frown on his face that made Noctis immediately feel about two inches tall.  He could just imagine what Ignis was thinking, considering their discussion, and his decision to end his relationship with Gladio.  He probably thought that Noctis was leading Gladio on which… honestly… he was, and he felt like a complete piece of shit because of it. 

“What’s up with you, Iggy? Been sucking on lemons?” Gladio questioned, and Ignis carefully schooled his features.  To his credit, Ignis said nothing about what he knew. For once, leaving Noctis to clean up his own mess. Noctis knew he should be grateful, but it only made him feel worse. 

“The nurse will be here soon, and this is hardly the place for such activities,” Ignis said instead.  Gladio rolled his eyes and muttered something that sounded like ‘stick in the mud’ but he drew back anyway, allowing Noctis a bit of breathing room. 

Prompto and Gladio then got into a heated debate over which nurses at the hospital were the ‘hottest’ while Ignis helped him dress.  At this point Noctis could pretty much do it himself, but the elder man insisted and Noctis felt bad enough already that he didn’t protest the aid.  Soon after the nurse arrived with the wheelchair and again Noctis didn’t protest the necessity of it. Ignis went through the room making sure all of their belongings were collected and Prompto insisted on pushing him.  Gladio walked beside him, as always, and sometimes he felt the man’s fingers brush along his shoulder or neck, making Noctis’ heart clench painfully each time.

They _finally_ allowed Noctis to walk on his own once they were outside the hospital, though he could feel Gladio’s hand warm and steady on his back nearly the entire way to the hotel. 

“We should probably spend a few more nights in town, until we can be sure you’ve fully regained your strength,” Ignis suggested along the way.

“Can we afford that?” Noctis asked doubtfully.  Between Noctis’ very expensive hospital bill and the cost of a hotel room for his friends while he’d recovered on top of that, their funds must be severely depleted already, if not nonexistent, “I’m fine to camp…”

“Don’t you worry about that.  If we need to, Iggy and I can pick up some hunting jobs while we’re here,” Gladio stated firmly, leaving little room for argument.  Noctis frowned.

“But…”

“Gladio is right, Noct.  If necessary, we are perfectly capable of handling a few easy jobs to acquire the funds we need.  Your health is by far more important,” Ignis insisted. Noctis knew it was pointless to argue. No matter how much he disliked the idea of them taking hunting jobs without him, they were never going to allow him to help until they were certain he was fully recovered.  Not when they had been treating him like glass for the last several days, and would probably continue to do so for some time.

Rather than argue, Noctis turned his attention to the bustling town around them, taking in the various sights and smells he’d missed.  Lestallum was just like he remembered. Not nearly as large as Insomnia had been, but the city had definitely had a charm that he’d grown to love.  Maybe he could convince Ignis to splurge on some of those meat sticks from the market stall he used to enjoy…

A dark shape next to one of the stalls made Noctis freeze in place and his breath hitched in surprise.  He blinked, and a moment later the shadow was gone. But he could have sworn he saw…

“Noct?  You okay?” Gladio asked, concerned, and instantly alert.  Noctis forced himself to relax even though his heart continued to race. 

“Yeah, I’m fine…” he said, trying to sound reassuring and not as shaken as he felt.  Even though he was sure that he’d seen... Umbra, and dreaded what that might mean. He was running out of time. 

“You sure?  You look like you just saw a ghost,” Gladio said, frowning deeply.  Before Noctis could answer, a distant shout drew all their attentions.

“Noctis!”

Noctis turned and his eyes widened in shock as Iris smiled and waved excitedly at them from the steps of the Leville.  As she rushed over to them, Noctis felt Gladio’s hand drop from his lower back immediately, and he instantly missed the comforting warmth.  He didn’t have much time to consider Gladio’s reaction, however, as he was tightly embraced by the young woman with enough force to make his ribs ache a little.

“Careful now!  He just got out of the hospital, you don’t want to break him, Iris,” Gladio gently chided his little sister, though there was laughter in his tone.  Iris immediately relaxed her old on him, stepping back to give him a thorough once over.

“Oh, Noctis!  We were all so worried when we heard you’d been hurt!  How are you feeling? I hope this big lug has been taking good care of you,” she said, indicating his bashful looking shield. 

“Iris…”

“Gladio’s been going above and beyond the call of duty, I’d say,” Prompto laughed with way too much innuendo, only to have the air knocked out of him when Gladio elbowed him hard in the stomach.  Noctis’ cheeks began to burn against his will, and Gladio wasn’t much better. Iris looked between the two of them with wide eyes.

“Oh?” then understanding dawned on her face, “Oh… well…”

There was a brief flash of disappointment in her eyes which was gone almost as soon as it appeared, then she smiled at them both brightly.

“Well, it’s about time!”


	8. Chapter 8

They decided on having dinner together at one of the small open air cafes.  Iris spent a great deal of time catching them up on what was happening at Cape Caem.  Cor, Monica, Dustin, and of course Talcott. It was a bit surreal to hear her speak about the boy who he’d seen grown into a young man in his time. He couldn’t help but remember the line of old cactuar figurines lined up neatly on the dash of the truck when Talcott had picked Noctis up on the beach of Galdin Quay.  He wondered if he’d already managed to find all of them for the young Talcott in this time yet...

He couldn’t deny that he’d missed Iris.  They’d played together often as children, and he’d come to think of her as almost a little sister too and he regretted not having a chance to see her in his time.  Though Gladio had taken great pride in describing the strong capable hunter his little sister had grown up to be.

Here and now, she looked exactly the same as Noctis remembered.  There was no reason she wouldn’t. But Noctis had almost gotten used to sometimes seeing his friend’s older selves superimposed in his mind over their younger counterparts.  He didn’t have that problem with Iris and he couldn’t help but smile in amusement at the mental image of  _ this  _ Iris taking on huge demons with little trouble.  Oh the heart attacks she must have given Gladio at the time…

Iris was exactly the sweet, almost bubbly, teenager he remembered… and at the same time, she wasn’t.    


Noctis knew that Iris once had a crush on him.  Well, he hadn’t known it at the time. Gladio had once called him clueless and he had been embarrassingly so.  But in his defense, Noctis had a lot on his mind at the time. Never mind the fact that Noctis had been too busy crushing on his shield to really notice anyone else.    


His first real clue had been when they’d been camping near Ravatogh and Gladio had asked him to help pick some flowers for his sister.  He’d been adamant about Noctis giving her the flowers rather than it being from both of them. Noctis still hadn’t understood why until he’d handed over the bouquet and the look Iris had given him was very similar to the looks he knew he sometimes gave Gladio when the older man wasn’t looking.    


Noctis clearly hadn’t been the only one who was clueless...

But now… it was strange.

Noctis’ head felt like it was spinning.  The memory was clear in his mind, but he wasn’t sure if it had actually… happened.  Had he already given Iris the flowers? Or had that not happened yet? If it hadn’t, it probably wouldn’t happen now… at least not the same way.    


Now that she knew he and Gladio were ‘boyfriends’, Iris no longer looked at him the same way she used to.  Instead she was busy teasing a blushing Gladio over dinner and demanding to know everything about how he and her brother gotten together.  After much coaxing, Gladio finally indulged her, though without  _ all  _ the details of course.  She sighed about how romantic it was, causing Prompto to start snorting juice from his nose as he laughed at Gladio’s expense.  And…

Noctis’ meal felt like lead in his stomach and his pulse pounded behind his eyes.  It didn’t mean anything, he told himself. It was just… a small change. If Iris no longer had a crush on him, what did that matter in the grand scheme of things?  Surely something so small couldn’t change anything that much. Then again, Noctis hadn’t thought allowing Prompto to stop to take pictures would change things so drastically.

He had been trying so hard not to change anything else.  In fact, he’d been trying to figure out a way to  _ undo  _ the changes he’d already made, before he made another mistake.  An unforgivable one. But the ripples kept spreading wider and wider. Because he’d gotten hurt, Iris had returned to Lestallum to make sure that he was okay.  Then she’d learned about his relationship with Gladio, which changed things even more. How would this affect Iris’ life from here on out? It was a butterfly effect.  Noctis wondered if it was even possible to stop the ripples from spreading any further. If all he could do at this point was attempt to minimize the damage. 

“Noctis, are you feeling alright?” Ignis asked, sounding concerned.

“Dude, you’re looking a little green around the gills,” Prompto chimed in worriedly, and Noctis lifted his head from where he’d been staring vacantly at his half-eaten plate of food.  All around the table the concerned faces of his companions were turned to watch him, making him feel on the spot. Gladio’s warm hand came to rest on his back, and rubbed comfortingly.  He tried to give his shield a reassuring smile, but he was afraid it appeared more like a grimace instead.

“I’m just tired,” it was his standard reply these days, and he knew it was getting old.  In all honesty, he wasn’t sure what was wrong with him. He’d felt fine before... now he felt shaky and dizzy.  Nauseous. Was it merely stress? Surely he was worrying too much over nothing, but if something happened to Iris because of this… he didn’t think he’d ever forgive himself.

Ignis frowned.    


“Well, you did just get out of the hospital.  Perhaps an early night is in order,” he suggested.  Noctis nodded, glad for the excuse to leave, and moved to stand.  Gladio rose with him, and his hand remained a stabilizing weight on his back the entire time.    


“You don’t need to come,” Noctis began to protest.  He knew Gladio didn’t get to see his sister nearly enough.  A quick shake of Gladio’s head cut his protests short however.

“It’s fine.  See you in the morning, Iris,” Gladio said.    


“See you in the morning.  I hope you feel better, Noctis,” Iris said sincerely, smiling warmly between him and Gladio, “Oh, I almost forgot!  I’ve got a message from Cid. He says the boat is almost ready, so you’ll be able to take it out soon.” 

The boat.  Altissia. Luna…

Noctis felt his knees began to weaken and it was only Gladio quickly slipping his arm around his waist for support that stopped him from ending up on his ass.  Ignis was already half out of his seat in alarm. 

“I’m fine.  I just… need to lay down.  See you guys later,” Noctis reassured quickly, though he could tell he wasn’t being very convincing at the moment.  Gladio quickly guided him away from the table back towards the hotel. At least he waited until they were out of earshot from their friends before Gladio began scolding him.    


“If you were this tired, you should have said something,” Gladio said, his voice sharp with irritation.  Noctis sighed and allowed his head to rest lightly against the older man’s side. 

“I don’t want to fight,” he said wearily.  Gladio said nothing more after this, guiding Noctis silently into the hotel and up to their room.  As soon as the door shut behind them, Gladio was pushing Noctis towards the bed and he laid down without complaint.  He threw one of his arms over his eyes to block out the light, hoping it would help ease the pounding in his skull. It didn’t do anything for his racing heart however.

Altissia… he’d thought it was further away.  He’d forgotten exactly  _ why  _ they were at the Vesperpools to begin with.  They were taking care of some hunts and replenishing their supplies in preparation of leaving as soon as Cid completed the repairs on the royal vessel.  That meant that Luna… it wasn’t weeks away as he’d thought. It was mere  _ days _ .

He wasn’t sure if he could do it again.  He’d watched Luna die once… and he’d been helpless to save her.  Now, even though he had the chance to do something, to change things, he couldn’t.  She had made that clear when she’d given him this gift, that some fates he could not change.  His father… Luna herself… but how could he simply stand by and watch her die?

No regrets.  That’s what Luna had said this gift was for.  Not taking a chance with Gladio, Ignis being injured, and allowing Prompto to be captured by Ardyn… those were some of his greatest regrets.  All things he could potentially change… but he was beginning to doubt even that much was possible. Perhaps this had all been some kind of test. Perhaps he was never meant to accept this ‘gift’ in the first place. If every change he made could potentially hurt those he cared for… and Luna… his greatest regret, and he was forbidden to even attempt to change it.  What would happen if he did?

“You pushed yourself too hard,” Gladio’s voice was softer, but still chiding… worried, as he began to unlace and pull off Noctis’ boots so he would be more comfortable.  Noctis moved his arm so he could look down at Gladio. 

“I’m fine. Just a headache and a little dizzy,” he said, which was true.  Along with the nausea settling in his stomach at the realization that if he stayed here for much longer he would be forced to watch his friend die a second time.  Not to mention if he couldn’t stop Ignis from being hurt… and Prompto from being tortured...

Tears began to pool in his eyes against his will, and Gladio’s eyes widened in alarm.  The older man sat on the edge of the bed and cradled Noctis’ hand between his own. His large hands practically engulfing his.    


“What is it, Noct?  I know you’re not telling me something… I can’t help if I don’t know what it is,” Gladio said, his voice rough with concern and frustration.  In response, Noctis reached up to grasp the black material of Gladio’s tank top and tried to tug the other man closer.

“Make love to me,” Noctis demanded when his shield stubbornly didn’t budge.  Gladio’s eyes were so wide at this point it was a miracle they didn’t fall right out of his head.    


“Sweet Six, Noct.  You’re exhausted, you need rest, not-”

“I need  _ you _ .  Please…” Noctis begged unashamedly.  Even though he knew he shouldn’t. There were so many reasons he shouldn’t.  Noctis was selfish and a complete asshole for even suggesting it. But he was running out of time, and he didn’t know if he could stop what he’d already set into motion and… as he’d told Gladio before… he didn’t want to die without knowing what it was like to be with the man he loved.  Even if it was only once… “Make love to me, Gladio.”

Please… at least let him have this one thing…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the 'cliffhanger' but loads of smut to follow, so it's gonna need its own chapter lol.


	9. Chapter 9

Looking into Gladio’s eyes, Noctis could see the exact moment where the older man’s tremendous willpower snapped.  Gladio’s eyes dilated and his nostrils flared. A low sound escaping his throat that was almost a growl. It was a surprisingly thrilling thing, to know he could have that kind of effect on Gladio. 

The next moment, Gladio was on the bed with him.  The weight of his larger frame pressed Noctis deliciously into the mattress as one of the man’s strong thighs slotted between his legs. The hands braced on either side of Noctis’ head were the only thing that kept Gladio from crushing him completely. Not that he would have minded.  Then Gladio’s lips seized his own in a desperate clash, kissing the very breath out of him, and his stomach did somersaults.

He wrapped his arms around the older man’s body, his hands quickly worming their way underneath the loose fitting shirt to grasp at the warm skin he found.  His nails dug into the firm muscles of Gladio’s back.

“Shit,” Gladio hissed, drawing back enough to literally tear the shirt off of Noctis.  He definitely heard the sound of fabric ripping. Ignis would probably scold him later for that. Not that Noctis really cared, because Gladio was kissing him again, his tongue thrusting into his mouth in a way that Noctis hoped would mirror later activities. 

When Gladio finally let him up for air, Noctis’ head fell back against the pillows with a groan.  Gladio’s lips continued their assault kissing along his jaw and down his neck. Noctis loved the feeling of Gladio’s beard scratching against his smooth skin.  It made his skin tingle in pleasant ways long after the man’s lips had moved to taste and suck on a different area of his flesh.

“Yes… Gladio…” Noctis whimpered, tilting his head and arching his back to silently beg for more.  Gladio nipped lightly at his collarbone and lapped softly at the sweat that was beginning to bead at the base of his throat.  Gladio cursed again.

“Ignis is going to have my dick for this,” Noctis heard the older man mutter against his chest, but that didn’t stop Gladio from shifting lower.  His tongue traced along his pecs until finally circling around one of his nipples. Noctis shivered and gasped, his trapped erection seeming to throb with every lick and suck to the sensitive peak on his chest.

“He can’t have it.  It’s mine,” Noctis finally managed to gasp out, and received a rumbling laugh from the older man.  Gladio lifted his head and grinned.

“You better believe it,” he replied, and went back to torturing Noctis so sweetly.  Playing with one nipple until it was so sensitive it nearly hurt, before switching sides to do the same thing to the other.  Noctis tried to squirm beneath the older man, seeking more stimulation than he was getting, but the weight of Gladio pressed against him kept him pretty firmly contained.

“Gladio, please…”

Gladio eventually moved on, leaving Noctis skin tingling in the cool air of the room.  The older man kissed down his stomach, paying special attention to the sensitive skin around his belly button.  But stopped and drew back to sit on his haunches before he could get where Noctis really wanted him.

Noctis panted where he laid spread out on the bed beneath Gladio.  His eyelashes hooding his eyes and his body trembling slightly with over stimulation, he must be a sight, if the look on his lover’s face was any indication.  Noctis allowed a slow smile to curve his lips as he looked up at the older man.

“Admiring your handiwork?” he asked silkily, stretching slowly. He might not be nearly as well built as Gladio was, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have muscle, despite Gladio’s constant teasing on the subject.  Gladio was _definitely_ enjoying the display given the way his eyes seemed to darken even more with lust as he watched.

“Stay right there,” Gladio ordered in a rough voice, placing a firm hand on the center of Noctis’ abdomen as though to drive the point home.  Then he was climbing off the bed, much to Noctis’ disappointment, and disappearing into the en-suite bathroom.

Noctis pouted, but obeyed.  It wasn’t long before Gladio returned, stripping off his tank top, pants, and underwear on the way.  Noctis’ mouth went a little dry as he stared up at the gorgeous body on display before him. From Gladio’s too pleased smirk all the way down to his proudly engorged cock, he was absolutely perfect.  He probably would have swooned at the sight if he wasn’t already laying down.

“Like what you see, your majesty?” Gladio’s words drew Noctis’ attention back up to his shit eating grin. 

“Get over here and fuck me, that’s an order,” Noctis replied, as his hands worked to unbutton his own trousers, quickly push them down, and kick them off the end of the bed.  Gladio laughed at his eagerness, though he was just as eager given the way his dick visibly twitched at Noctis’ words.

“As my king commands,” Gladio said huskily.  A bottle of lubricant was tossed onto the bed beside Noctis, and then Gladio was climbing on top of him again.  The feeling of bare skin pressing against his own was ecstasy in itself and Noctis moaned unashamedly as he parted his legs, allowing the other man to settle between them.  Gladio kissed him with unrestrained passion. Their cocks slid against each other, hot brands of iron trapped between their bodies, leaving trails of precum along both their skin. 

Eventually Gladio pulled back again and shifted his weight.  Noctis heard the snap of the bottle’s lid and a few moments later felt the cool press of of Gladio’s slick fingers sliding along the crease of his ass.  Noctis hissed and his body instinctively tried to flinch away from the sensation, but the warm press of Gladio’s other hand against his stomach held him in place.  Gladio’s finger began to circle around the puckered opening of his body.

“I want you to tell me honestly how you’re doing.  If it’s too much, I want you to tell me to stop,” Gladio stated firmly, his tone brooking no argument.  Noctis nodded absently, but apparently that wasn’t good enough for the older man.

“I mean it, Noct.  Tell me you understand.”

“I understand.  Please, Gladio…” Noctis whispered, lifting his hips eagerly.  Finally Gladio’s large hand wrapped around his cock. Noctis’ hips immediately bucked and he whimpered at the sensation even though Gladio wasn’t stroking him so much as holding him.  A moment later he felt a slick finger push into him slowly and Noctis forgot how to think.

A desperate keen left his throat and his head fell back as his body arched.  His body instinctively clamped down on the intrusion, making the feeling a little more uncomfortable than it probably should be.  Gladio immediately stopped pushing and stroked Noctis’ cock almost soothingly.

“Easy.  Relax, baby…” Gladio breathed, sounding about as wrecked as Noctis felt, and they’d barely even gotten started.  Noctis forced his muscles to unclench, a little easier said than done, given the foreignness of the sensation, but he trusted Gladio to know what he was doing.  Once Gladio seemed satisfied, he pushed the finger all the way into him, continuing to stroke his cock slowly. Noctis was given a few moments to adjust, then the finger began to twist slowly, coating his inner walls with the lube. Noctis shivered at the intimacy of it all. 

“How you doing?” Gladio asked as he began to push the finger in and out of him, slowly fucking Noctis with it while he continued to gently stroke his cock.

“Good… Mmm… more…” Noctis answered honestly, and lifted his hips.  Gladio smiled. The finger was withdrawn and two replaced it with more lube.  Noctis hissed and Gladio froze.

“It’s cold,” Noctis explained quickly, so Gladio wouldn’t get the wrong idea.  Gladio laughed.

“Sorry about that, Princess,” Gladio teased, and Noctis smacked his thigh in retaliation.  The fingers inside him curled and Noctis cursed as stars exploded behind his eyes.

“Fuck!” Noctis gasped. 

“Like that, huh?”

“Fuck, yes.  Don’t you dare stop,” Noctis demanded and Gladio chuckled again.

“As you wish.”

Gladio’s fingers continued to move inside of him, pushing in and out, sometimes spreading to open him up further.  The hand on Noctis’ cock was just enough to keep him hard and desperate without letting him come. Noctis didn’t know whether he loved or hated Gladio for that.  It was amazing and frustrating at the same time.

When Gladio deemed him ready, the two fingers were replaced with three.  This was definitely more difficult, the burning stretch on the edge between pleasure and pain when Gladio pushed them inside.  Noctis swore he could feel it all the way up his spine. But then those fingers pressed into the bundle of nerves inside of him, and Noctis whimpered as his cock began to leak in Gladio’s hand. 

“Gladio… please… I need you… now… please…” Noctis panted, gazing up at the older man, his eyes glazed with pleasure and need.  Gladio must have been just as desperate as he was to get inside of him, because he didn’t even try to argue. The fingers slid out of his body, leaving him feeling shockingly empty. 

“Turn over, it will be easier…” Gladio suggested, a hand on Noctis’ hip as though to help him.  Noctis quickly shook his head, his sweaty bangs falling into his eyes.

“No, I want to see you,” he demanded.  Again, Gladio didn’t argue. He simply grabbed a pillow to shove underneath Noctis’ hips and lower back, and pushed his knees up to his chest.  Noctis grasped his own knees to keep himself open as Gladio slicked his cock and positioned himself. The hot press of the head of Gladio’s cock against his hole made him shiver in anticipation. 

“Ready?” the older man asked, his voice already sounding strained.  Noctis nodded, and thankfully this was enough for Gladio because he started to push through the tight ring of muscles into his body with his cock.  It hurt. Noctis wasn’t going to deny that. But it wasn’t an unbearable pain, and he didn’t want Gladio to stop, so he bit his lip and suffered through it.  Even as tears began to pool in his eyes.

“I know…” Gladio whispered, his thumb caressing beneath one of Noctis’ eyes, “Is it too much? We don’t have to…”

“I’m fine.  I know it will get better.  Keep going,” Noctis demanded.  Even though his voice was a little rough, it was steady, so Gladio obeyed.  Once the head of his cock was inside it did get a little easier, even though the stretching burn was still very intense.  Gladio stilled to allow Noctis to adjust even though Noctis could feel the older man’s muscles trembling from the effort. Once Noctis’ muscles relaxed the near death grip he had on the man, Gladio allowed himself to sink deeper into him, withdraw a little, and then push in again.  Carefully fucking him open.

It was slow going, but gradually the burn faded until it was nearly forgotten, and was replaced by a deep full ache that was much more pleasant.  When Noctis finally felt Gladio’s hips press against his ass, he moaned in pleasure, clutching at the older man’s shoulders for support as he squeezed his inner muscles around the cock inside of him.

“Gods, Noct…” Gladio breathed against the crook of his neck, pressing a trail of kisses along his throat. 

“Fuck me, Gladio,” Noctis whispered, and his shield obeyed.  Slowly at first, withdrawing nearly all the way out of him before pressing in deep again.  Each long slow stroke making Noctis whimper helplessly. As it became easier for them both, Gladio shifted.  His hands once more braced on either side of Noctis’ head for leverage as he began to fuck him with quick shallow snaps of his hips.  It took a few tries, but eventually Gladio found the right angle to hit Noctis’ prostate nearly every thrust. In turn, Noctis’ moans grew increasingly louder as pleasure began to overwhelm him.  Leaving him shuddering and gasping beneath Gladio.

“Fuck, Noctis…” Gladio gasped, his eyes never leaving Noctis’ face while he fucked him as though mesmerized.  Noctis reached between them to grasp his leaking cock, stroking himself in time with Gladio’s thrusts and crying out loudly as the older man rolled his hips as he fucked into him.  Loving the reaction from the younger man, Gladio did it again and again.

“Gladio… I’m gonna…” Noctis shuddered and whimpered as Gladio picked up the speed and intensity of his thrusts.

“Yeah, baby.  Me too… so close… lemme see you come…”  Gladio whispered, his voice like dark warm molasses pouring into Noctis’ veins.  Noctis made a choked sound, his body drawing taunt like a bow as his cock pulsed between his fingers.  Hot ropes of cum shooting across his and Gladio’s stomach while he shuddered. Gladio groaned deep in his chest, continuing to fuck into Noctis despite the clenching of his body, until he finally spilled his seed into the younger man with a shout. 

Noctis laid there, trembling and panting, and Gladio pressed as close as possible, mouthing along his jaw until the younger man turned his head to claim his lips in a lazy kiss.  Slowly Gladio drew back to stare down at Noctis with an expression so fond it made the younger man’s heart ache.

“Fuck, you’re so damn beautiful…” Gladio breathed in near awe.  Noctis smiled as he traced his fingers over the sweat slick muscles of Gladio’s stomach. 

“You’re not so bad yourself,” he replied, and Gladio practically preened. 

“Oh yeah?”

Noctis snickered at the other man’s obvious fishing for compliments.  Well, he wasn’t going to contribute to the older man’s already inflated ego, even if he deserved it.

“Well, It could have been worse, I guess…” Noctis replied, feigning disinterest even as his fingers traced lightly around one of the older man’s nipples, making Gladio shudder. 

“Fucking brat,” Gladio said, though there was laughter in his tone as he carefully withdrew from Noctis’ body.  Noctis winced slightly at the deep ache inside of him. He was definitely going to be feeling that for a while.

“Guess you’ll just have to try harder next time,” Noctis said, stretching languidly and enjoying every ache he felt in his body.  Gladio wiped them both down with the tattered remains of Noctis shirt and tossed it aside. Then he laid down and drew Noctis tightly against his body, who was all too happy to snuggle against his shield. 

“I think that can be arranged,” Gladio said, a smile in his voice as his fingers traced lovingly along Noctis back. 

* * *

A few hours later it was well into night.  Gladio slept sprawled on his back in the bed they’d shared.  The sheets bunched loosely around his waist. The moonlight creating enticing planes of light and shadow where it spilled like liquid silver across the man. 

Noctis sat on the edge of the bed, watching the older man sleep with a troubled frown. 

Gladio looked so peaceful right now.  He’d seemed so happy lately. Noctis regretted that happiness was built on a lie, but he still couldn’t regret what they had done together.  He would treasure the memory of being with Gladio always. It would comfort him in his darkest moments. He hoped… it might comfort Gladio too.  Once Noctis was gone. He hoped Gladio would forgive him eventually.

Noctis sighed and brushed a few dark strands of hair off of Gladio’s face.  The older man turned into his touch, seeking him out even in his sleep, and Noctis’ breath hitched. 

Slowly Noctis drew away and stood.  His body still ached, but not nearly as badly as before, as he made his way over to the window.  Feeling drawn there almost against his will. It was late enough that the streets of Lestallum were nearly empty.  No one but Noctis saw the black dog sitting in the middle of the sidewalk, staring up at the hotel. Noctis closed his eyes.  He knew he was out of time… but…

“Please… just… a little while longer,” he begged so softly he almost couldn’t hear his own voice. 

He knew he should leave before… he knew every moment he stayed was the danger of changing something he shouldn’t, which could put his friends at risk.  But… he just… he couldn’t. Ignis. Prompto. Gladio… There was still too much he needed to do. He had to at least try…

Noctis opened his eyes, and when he looked down, Umbra was gone.  He didn’t know exactly what that meant. He could only hope… it was a good sign and not an ill omen. 

“Thank you,” he whispered anyway, though he wasn’t sure who exactly he was thanking.  Luna? The Astrals?

That was when he felt something drip from his nose and slide down his chin. Frowning, he lifted his hand to wipe it away, and when he looked at his fingers they were stained with blood.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming Soon...
> 
> Beginning at the End: Ignis


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